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CEYLOlSr 



IN THE 



JUBILEE YEAR." 



fFITH AN ACCOUNT OF TSE PROGRESS MADE SINCE 1803, 
AND OF THE PRESENT CONDITION OF ITS AGRI- 
CULTURAL AND COMMERCIAL ENTERPRISES; 

THE EESOUECES AWAITING DEVELOPMENT 

PY CAPITALISTS; 

AND THE UNEQUALLED AnRACTIONS OFFERED TO VISITORS. 

WITH MUOH USEFUL STATISTICAL INFOEMATION, SPECIALLY 
FBEFAEED HAF8, AHD NUMEBOUS ILLUSTBATIONS. 



BY 



JOHN FEKGUSON, 



Co-Editor of" Ceylon Observer," " Tropical Jgriculturis*,"' " Ceylon Handbook,'' <tc. 

Life Member of the Ceylon Branch of the Boyal Asiatic Society ; 

Honorary Corresponding Secretary of the Royal Colonial Institute, 



^^ Embassies from regions far remote : 

* * * * 

From India and the Golden Chersonese, 

And utmost Indian Isle Tapbobane." — Milton. 



THIRD EDITION: REVISEDi ENLARGED, AND BROUGHT DOWN TO DATE. 

JOHN HADDON AND CO., 3, Bouverie SigaEET. 
A. M. & J. EEEGUSON. 

1887. 
\All rights reserved.] 



P5 

.P3S 
18 97 



ITICWIX BBOTHEBSy 

TBS 0BE8HAM PBrSS, 

CHILWOBTH AND LOKOON. 



7^y^'7V 'c3v?/ 



TO 
THE BIGHT HONOUIUBLE 

SIE WILLIAM H. GREGOJRY, K.C.M.G., 

WHO WAS OOYEBNOB 01* THE ISLAND OF CEYLON AND TDE 

DEPENDENCIES THEBEOF FEOM 1872 TO 1877; 

THIS LITTLE Y0LT7MB IS BESFECTFULLY 

IN THIS HEB MOST OBACIOUS MAJESTY*S 

JUBILEE YEAH; 

AS A SLIOHT TESTIMONY TO THE BENEFICENCE 

OF HIS ADMINISTBATION IN CONDUCING TO THE 

ADYANCEMBKT OF CEYLON AND 

THE WELL-BEING OF THE COMMUNITY, AND MOBE ESPECIALLY IN 

PBOMOTING GOOD FEELING AND MUTUAL BESPECT 

AMONG THE 

DIFFEBENT CLASSES AND BACES 

BEPBESENTED IN ITS YABIED POPULATION; 

BY HIS OBEDIENT AND BUMBLE 8EBYANT, 

THE AUTHOR. 



PEEFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION. 



It is necessary to explain that the basis of the 
following Volume was an account of Ceylon (with 
accompanying Map) prepared in April, 1883, as a 
Paper to be read before the members of the Eoyal 
Colonial Institute. It was, however, received too 
late for the day fixed, and accordingly was pub- 
lished in book form, under the title of *' Ceylon in 
1883," by Messrs. Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, 
and Bivington. A second edition, under the auspices 
of the same firm, was issued within a few months 
of the first, entitled, " Ceylon in 1884." 

This latter work has now been out of print for 
some time, and the author has been frequently urged 
to arrange for a third issue. 

It is appropriate that this revised and considerably 
enlarged edition should appear in the year of the 
" Queen's Jubilee," as giving some account of what 
is the most important, whether in population or 
wealth, of Her Majesty's Crown Colonies, and bring- 
ing the information, so far as it goes, down to the 
present date. Besides large additions to nearly all 
the chapters — more especially to those on Social 
and Legislative Progress, on Agricultural and Plant- 
ing Industries, and on the future Government of 
Ceylon — a new chapter has been introduced dealing 
with the Life, Customs, Caste, and Occupations of 
the natives. Additions have also been made to the 
Appendix, more especially in reference to Missions, 
Caste, the Tea Industry, Statistical Information, 



vi Preface to the Third Edition. 

and the re-publication of recent letters of Mr. A. M. 
Ferguson, describing the Pearl Fisheries and ancient 
Buins of Ceylon. This edition also includes a second 
Map, prepared to show the Eailway system of the 
Island, and it contains over a score of additional 
Illustrations. 

Apart from this being a Jubilee volume, it affords 
gratification to the author that he is enabled to 
dedicate the present edition to one whom he con- 
siders to have been in many respects a model 
administrator for a Crown Colony — a gentleman 
who, as Her Majesty's representative, did more to 
smooth away the angularities peculiar to colonial 
life in the tropics, and to promote good under- 
standing between the governing and the various 
ranks, classes, and castes of the governed, than any 
other living Governor of Ceylon. The author refers 
to the Eight Honourable Sir William H. Gregory, 
K.C.M.G., who, when he left its shores, did not, 
like nearly all previous Governors, remove his in- 
terests and practically forget the existence of Ceylon, 
but who, as a private individual, has since devoted 
capital and time to the development of its resources, 
while he still retains the deepest personal interest 
in all that concerns the welfare of the Island and 
its people. 

A full index, which will be found sufficient for 
ready reference, has been added to the present 
edition. 

In conclusion, the author bespeaks the forbearance 
of Ceylon readers, considering that he has had no 
opportunity of seeing the main portion of the proof- 
sheets in the short time available for the printing 
and publication of the book many thousands of miles 
away from his adopted home. 



Colombo, Getlon. 
June 17, 1887. 



CORRIGENDA. 

[The fact that the author was unable to see the greater portion of 
the pages when passing through the press will account for^ the 
number of corrections noted here.] 

Page 2, loit line but one, for " C.E.I." after Mr. Burrows' name, 

substitute •• CCS." (Ceylon Civil Service). 
Page 3, sixth line from bottom^ for •• all was " at end of line, substitute 

** everything was." 
Page 4, at end of second paragraph, after *• Tyre," read *• of Eastern 

and Southern Asia." 
Page 5, fourth line from top, for ** Kopok " read " Kapok." 
Page 10, in table, opposite ** Military -Imperial Share,** substitute 
** £160,000" for "£80,000." The word "nil" should appear 
under "1796-1816," opposite "Post Office Savings Banks," 
" Exchange and Deposit Bank Offices," " Volume of business," 
" Government note issue," " No. of newspapers despatched." 
Page 12, under engraving, for " Mahavelligange, at Gangaruna," read 

" Mahavelliganga, at GAngaruu;a." 
Page 24, under engraving, for " Topavi " read ** Topari." 
Page 34, seventh line from top, for " Stuart " read " St€M?art " 

Mackenzie. 
Page 46, last line after " 60,000 Sinhalese " add " and Tamils." 
Page 46, eleventh line from top, for " Zodi-ella " read " Todi-ella." 
Page 49, sixteenth line from top, for " villages " substitute "districts." 
Page 61, the paper, referred to in the first note to this page, on the 

" coconut " has not yet been read before the Asiatic Society. 
Page 54, fifth line from top, for " umbracolifera " read " umbracu- 

lifera." 
Page 55, first line, for ** papt^s " read " papains." 
Page 69, second paragraph. It has been shown by Dr. Trimen, of the 
Royal Botanic Garden, since this was written, that there is no 
reliable evidence of the Arabs having introduced coffee into India 
and Ceylon, and it is more probable that the seed was first 
brought to the island by the Dutch towards the end of tiie 
seventeenth century. 
Page 68, in sub-heading, read "cacao" for "cocoa." 
Page 72, ninth line, for " directed " read " diverted." 
Page 82, fourth line, for " no attentive aid," read " no attention." 
Page 94, nineteenth line, for " forming," read ** and have formed." 
Page 121, last line, for " Trimer " read " Trimen." 
Page 123, first line, delete comma after " Cycas " ; delete " a " in 

" cocoanut " in seventh, ninth, and eleventh lines. 
Page 129, note, see Mr. A. M. Ferguson's *' Letters from Anur&dha- 

pura " in appendix. 
Page 180, second note, see Letters by A. M. Ferguson from ''Pearl 

Fishery of 1887 " in appendix. 
Page 132, eleventh line from bottom, for ** Carropus " read " Canopus." 
Page 169, last line, for Appendix " VII." read " VIII." 
Page 267. Add to the List of Benefactors — T. E. B. Skinner, Ceylon 
Civil Service, for his work in improving the Postal and Tele- 
graphic Service of the Colony. 



I 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

PAST HISTORY. 

PAOBT 

The Ophir and Tarshish of Solomon — Northern and 
Southern Indian dynasties — Chinese invasion and 
connection with the island in ancient and modern 
times — Portuguese and Dutch rule — British annex- 
ation 1 



CHAPTER II. 

THE ISLAND IN 179C>1815, AND SEVENTY YEAPwS LATEB. 

Extent and topographical features — Condition of the island 
previous to and after ninety years of British rulo con- 
trasted 8 



CHAPTER III. 

SOCIAL PROQBESS IN NINETY YEARS. 

Population — Buildings — Postal and Telegraphic services — 
Savings-bank — Banking and Currency — Police — Mili- 
tary defence — Medical and Educational achievements 
— Laws and Crime . . . . . . .28 



viii Contents. 

CHAPTEB IV. 

PAGE 
LEGISLATIVE AND GENERAL IMPROVEMENT UNDER THE RULE 
OF SUCCESSIVE BRITISH GOVERNORS — THE NEED OF PRO- 
MOTING CO-OPERATION AND GOOD FEELING BETWEEN 
THE DIFFERENT CLASSES AND RACES . . . .83 



CHAPTEB V. 

NATIVE AGRICULTURAL AND MANUFACTURING INTERESTS. 

Faddy (rice) cultivation — Cinnamon — Coconut, Palmyra, 
Kitul, Arecanut, and other Palms — Essential oils — 
Tobacco — Cotton — Sugar-cane — Other Fruit-trees and 
Vegetables — Natural Pasture — Local Manufactures . 42 

CHAPTEB VI. 

THE ORIGIN AND RISE OF THE PLANTING INDUSTRY. 

Coffee introduced by Arabs — First systematically cultivated 
by the Dutch in 1740 — Extensive development in 1837 
— Highest level of prosperity reached in 1868-70 — 
Appearance of Leaf Disease in 1869 — Its disastrous 
effects 59 

CHAPTEB VII. 

NEW PRODUCTS. 

Tea — Cinchona — Cacao (or Cocoa) — Cardamoms — India- 
rubber — Liberian Coffee, &c. 69 

CHAPTEB VIII. 

PRESENT POSITION OF AGRICULTURAL ENTERPRISE, LOCAL 

INDUSTRIES AND FOREIGN TRADE. 

Exports of last decade — The Plumbago trade — Gold and 
Iron — Native industries generally flourishing — Tea 
especially and Cinchona will make up for the deficiency 
in Coffee 85 



Contents. ix 

CHAPTEB IX. 

PAOE 

WHAT THE PLANTING INDUSTRY HAS DONE FOE THE MOTHER- 
COUNTRY. 

Eecent years of depression considered — Planting profits 
absorbed in the past by Home capitalists — Absence of 
reserves of local wealth — The accumulated profits of 
past years estimated 00 

CHAPTEB X. 

WHAT THE PLANTING INDUSTRY HAS DONE FOB CEYLON. 

Population nearly doubled — Bevenue quadrupled — Trade 
expanded sixteen to twenty fold — Employment afforded 
to natives — An El Dorado for the Indian immigrant — 
Coffee in the past, as Tea in the future, the mainstay 
of the island — Material progress in the Planting 
districts 96 

CHAPTEB XI. 

PRESENT PROSPECTS FOR CAPITALISTS IN CEYLON. 

Ceylon still a good field for investment — ^Its freedom from 
atmospheric disturbances — Shipping conveniences at 
the new harbour of Colombo — Low freights — Cheap 
and imrivalled means of transport — Large tracts 
available for tea and other tropical culture — Openings 
for young men with capital — High position taken by 
the Ceylon Planter — Facilities for personal inspection 
of investments 105 

CHAPTEB XXL 

ATTRACTIONS FOR THE TRAVELLER AND VISITOR. 

The voyage a pleasure trip — Historical monuments, Vege- 
tation, &c. — ^Variety of climate — Colombo, the capital— 
Kandy, the Highland capital — Nuwara Eliya, the 
Sanatarium — ^The Horton Plains — Adam's Peak — Uva 
and its long-delayed railway — Ancient cities of Anurdd- 
hapura and Polonnaruwa — Occasional Pearl fisheries — 
Probable expense of a visit to Ceylon — ^The alleged 
inconveniences of tropical life 113 



X Contents. . 

CHAPTER XIII. 

PAGE 

THE REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE OF CEYLON. 

Chief sources of Bevenue : Grain and Castoms dues, sales 
of Crown Land, and Railway profits .... 13B 



CHAPTER XIV. 

WHAT ITS GOVERNMENT CXN DO FOR CEYLON. 

Active and independent Administrators required — The 
obstruction to progress offered in Downing Street — 
Railway extension and Graving Dock at Colombo 
urgently called for — Law reform needed— Technical, 
industrial, and agricultural education needs encou- 
raging — The Buddhist Temporalities question — ^Fiscal 
Reform : Road tax, Excise laws. Salt monopoly. Food 
taxes. Customs duties — The Duke of Buckingham's 
Ceylon and Southern India railway project— Ceylon 
and India — ^Waste Crown Lands 137 



CHAPTER XV. 

SOCIAL LIFE AND CUSTOMS. 

Social Life and Customs of the natives of Ceylon — How 
little colonists may know of village life— Domestic 
servants — Caste restrictions — Curious occupations 
among the people — Sinhalese Philanthropists, Messrs. 
De Soysa and Rajapakse 152 



CHAPTER XVI. 

CONCLUSION. 

Relation and importance of Ceylon to India — Progress of 
Christianity and education — Statistics of Population — 
Need of Reform in the Legislative Council, and sketch 
of a scheme for the election of unofficial members — 
Loyalty of People to British Rule, as evinced during 
Royal visits — The Celebration of the Jubilee of 
Her Majesty the Queen-Empress .... 166 



Contents. xi 



APPENDICES. 

PAGE 

I. — Shooting Trips in Ceylon and a description of the 
Elepbaot Kraal held at Labugama for the entertain- 
ment of the Princes Albert Victor and George of 
Wales in 1882 179 

11. — Extracts from Major Forbes's "Eleven Years in 
Ceylon " : (1) The ancient capital, Anur^dhapura ; 
(2) A visit to Kandy — The moral laws of Gautama 
Buddha ; (3) Kandyan festivals 203 

III. — Progress of Christianity and Illustrations of the 
Progress of Mission- work in Ceylon: (1) American 
Mission ; (2) Church Mission ; (3) Baptist Mission ; 
(4) Wesleyan Mission; (5) A Sketch of Missionary 
Work 236 

IV.— Caste in Ceylon 251 

V. — Lists of the British Governors of Ceylon, Chief 
Justices, Commanders of Troops, Executive Council- 
lors, and prominent non-official Public Benefactors . 252 

VI. — The principal statistical results of the last Census of 
Ceylon, taken in February, 1881 262 

VII.— Table of the staple Imports of Ceylon from 1837 to 
1886 209 

VIII. — Summary of Information regarding Ceylon . . 270 

IX. — Ceylon and its Planting Industries . . . . 318 

X. — The Prospects of England's chief Tropical Colony . 328 

XL — Adam's Peak and its Shadow 337 

XII. — Tea in Ceylon — Planters' Association Pamphlet . 3 14 

XIII. — Works of Public Interest executed by the De Soysa 

femily 350 

XIV.--~Benefaction8 of S. D. A. Bajapakse, Esq., Mudaliyar 
of the Governor's Gate, and J.P. for the Island . . 352 

XV. — Two Genealogical Tables, showing the Descent of 
S. D. A. Bajapakse, Esq., Mudaliyar of His Excel- 
lency's Gate, and J.P. for the Island, through his father 
and his mother 354 

XVI. — Colombo and the Buddhist Temple at Kelaniya, as 
described by *• Vagabond '* in the Melbourne Argus . 357 



xii Contents. 

XVII. — Statistics of Ceylon Railways. (See the Map at end 
of Volume) 866 

XVIII.— Caste in Ceylon 367 

XIX.— The Ceylon Pearl Fisheries in 1887 . . .381 

XX. — Annradhapura, the Ancient Capital of Ceylon, and 
adjacent Buins and Tanks, in 1887 .... 889 

XXI. — Beference to Frontispiece 407 

XXII. — Beference to Map of Ceylon . . . .416 



For General Index See Page 417. 



LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONS. 



STATUE OF SIR WILLIAM GREGORY IN FRONT OF THE 

COLOMBO MUSEUM FrotiHapiece 

PAOE 
VIGNETTES OP GOVERNORS OP CEYLON . . To foce 1 

THE NEW HARBOUR OF CEYLON .... „ 8 

VIEW ON THE MAHAVELLIGANGA, NEAR KANDY ... 12 

BRIDGE OF BOATS, COLOMBO 14 

SCENE AMONG THE RUINS OF POLONARUWA ... 24 

TRINCOMALEE HARBOUR 37 

A COCONUT PLANTATION 43 

A COCONUT CLIMBER 52 

TALIPOT PALM IN FLOWER 54 

VIEW OP A YOUNG TEA, COFFEE, AND CINCHONA PLANTATION 

(abbotsford) 60 

LIBERIAN COFFEE 62 

ASSAM-CHINA HYBRID TEA PLANT 70 

CINCHONA succiRUBRA {Genuine Bed BarJc) ... 71 

THE ARABIAN COFFEE TREE 78 

THE ASSAM TEA TREE 75 

PODS OP THE CACAO (CHOCOLATE) TKEE . .70 

THE CACAO (chocolate) TREE 81 

THE CEARA RUBBER TREE 88 

THE BANYAN TREE {FicU8 Indico) 89 

COFFEE, ARABIAN AND LIBERIAN 104 

LOW-COUNTRY SINHALESE MAN AND WOMAN . . . 112 



xiv List of Illustrations. 

PAOB 
KANDY LAKE 120 

GROUP OP PALMS, &C., BOTAL BOTANIO GARDENS, PERADENIYA 122 

NUWARA ELIYA, THE MOUNTAIN SANATARIUM . . . 124 

THE FALLS OF RAMBODA 125 

DAGOBA 29 

NAULA FALLS, EASTERN HAPUTALE 131 

EANDTAN HIGHLAND SUBORDINATE CHIEFTAIN . . . 134 

MOORMAN "TAMBY" (pEDLAR) 164 

THE DHOBY 167 

DEVIL DANCER, WITH ATTENDANT TOM-TOM BEATER . . 100 

C. H. DE SOYSA, ESQ., J.P 1G3 

SAMPSON DE RAJAPAKSE, ESQ., J.P 164 

KANDY TEMPLE 167 

WILD ELEPHANTS IN THE ELEPHANT KEAAL .... 178 

ELEPHANT CHARGE IN THE JUNGLE 186 

SCENE AMONG THE RUINS OF POLANNARUA .... 204 

DIAGRAM OF THE TOPOGRAPHY OF ADAM'S PEAK . . 839 

DIAGRAM OF RAINBOW ROUND THE SHADOW OF ADAM'S PEAK . 840 

COOLIE GIRL PICKING TEA-LEAVES 345 

WEIGHING-IN GREEN TEA-LEAF ON A TEA ESTATE . . 847 



NOTE. 



■♦•- 



Most of the Ceylon photographs from which the engravings were 
made for this volnme were taken by Messrs. W. L. H. Skeen and Co., 
Colombo ; bnt those of the Ceara rubber-tree (page 83) and of the 
LiberiaH coffee (page 104) were by Mr. C. T. Scowen, photographer, 
Eandy and Colombo, Ceylon. For the engraving of Cinchona on 
page 71 the author is indebted to Messrs. Howabd and Sons. A few of 
the.' engravings added in this edition are from the " Souvenirs of 
Ceylon," by A. M. Febgusom, 1870. Aoknoiivledgment is made on 
page 62 to the Bev. S. Lanodon and his publisher for the use of four 
engravings. And we have further to express our obligation to Messrs. 
Taylob and Francis for|the loan of the engravings illustrative of the 
Paper on the Shadow of Adam's Peak, page 315. 




SOME OF THE BEITISH QOVEBNOEB OP OEYLON. 
(Jbr eoBipUU li*t let Appendix V. , fogt 262.) 



€t]alan m % ^nhxkt ^tux. 



CHAPTEE I. 

PAST HISTOBY. 

The Ophir and Tarsbish of Solomon — Northern and Southern Indian 
dynasties — Chinese invasion and connection with the Island in 
ancient and modem times — Portngnese and Dutch rule— British 
annexation. 

I TAKE it for granted that the readers of this work 
will have some general acquaintance with the position, 
history, and condition of Ceylon. It is the largest, 
most populous, and most important of her Britannic 
Majesty's Grown Colonies, which are so called because 
the administration of their affairs is under the direct 
control of the Colonial Office. 
Ceylon has long been 

** Confessed the best and brightest gem 
In Britain's orient diadem." 

There can be no danger now-a-days of a member 
of Parliament getting up in his place to protest 
Against British troops being stationed in Ceylon on 
account of the deadly climate of '^ this part of West 
Africa," the '^ utmost Indian isle" being then con- 
founded with Sierra Leone ! 

2 



2 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Known to ancient voyagers as far back as the time 
of King Solomon (of whose Ophir and Tarshish many 
believe Ceylon to have formed a part), the story of its 
beauty, its jewels, and its spices was familiar to the 
Greeks and Bomans, who called it Taprobane, and to 
the Arab traders who first introduced the coffee plant 
into this island, and who placed in Serendib the scene 
of many of Sindbad's adventures. It was also known 
to the Mohammedan world at large, who to this day 
regard the island as the elysium provided for Adam 
and Eve to console them for the loss of Paradise, a 
tradition used as a solatium by Arabi and his co- 
Egyptian exiles a few years ago, when deported from 
their native land. To the people of India, to the 
Burmese, Siamese, and Chinese, Lankd, ''the re- 
splendent," was equally an object of interest and 
admiration, so that it has been well said that no 
island in the world, Great Britain itself not excepted, 
has attracted the attention of authors in so many 
different countries as has Ceylon. 

There is no land, either, which can tell so much of 
its past history, not merely in songs and legends, but 
in records which have been verified by monuments, 
inscriptions, and coins ; some of the structures in and 
around the ancient capitals of the Sinhalese are 
more than 2,000 years old, and only second to those 
of Egypt in vastness of extent and architectural 
interest.* Between 543 b.o., when Wijaya, a prince 
from Northern India, is said to have invaded Ceylon, 
conquered its native rulers, and made himself king, 
and the end of the year 1816, when the last king 
of Eandy, a cruel monster, was deposed and banished 

• See •* Buried Citdefl of Ceylon,'* by S. M. Burrows, C.E.I., pub- 
lished by A. M. and J. Ferguson. 



Past History. 8 

by the British, the Sinhalese chronicles present us 
with a list of well-nigh 170 kings and queens, the 
history of whose administrations is of the most varied 
and interesting character, indicating the attainment 
of a degree of civilization and material progress very 
unusual in the East at that remote age. Long^ 
peaceful, and prosperous reigns were interspersed 
with others chiefly distinguished by civil dissensions 
and foreign invasions. The kings of Ceylon, how- 
ever, had given sufficient provocation to foreign 
rulers when in the zenith of their power. In the 
twelfth century the celebrated king Prakrama Bahii 
not only defeated the rulers of Southern Indian 
states, but sent an army against the king of Cam- 
bodia, which, proving victorious, made that distant 
land tributary to Ceylon.* On the other hand, in 
retaliation for the plundering of a Chinese vessel in a 
Sinhalese port, a Chinese army, early in the fifteenth 
century, penetrated to the heart of the hill-country, 

* The king of Cambodia (Siam) in these days is a tribute-offerer 
to Lank&, as the following paragraph from a Sinhalese paper last 
year will show : — 

** Presents from the Kino of Cambodia, to the Buddhist 
College, Malioasamda, Colombo. — Several gold images, an excellent 
ambrella, ornamented with precious stones, and a brush made of the 
king's hair, to be kept for use (sweeping) in the place where Buddha's 
image is placed, have been sent by the king of Cambodia to the 
high priest in charge of the college. Two or three priests have also 
come down to receive instruction in Pali, <&c., (fee. — Kirana^ April 19." 

During a visit to China in 1881 nothing struck the author more 
than the exact resemblance between a Buddhist temple in Canton 
and one in Ceylon ; the appearance of the priests, their worship and 
ceremonies, all were alike. Outside^ in that Mongolian world, all was 
80 different; the country, the towns, the customs, and the people 
with their pigtails, their oval eyes, and dress, all were strange and 
novel; but inside this Canton temple, before the shaven, yellow- 
robed monks, one felt for a moment carried back to '* Lank6/' and 
its numerous Buddhist temples. 



4 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

and, defeating the Sinhalese forces at the then royal 
capital, Gampola, captured the king, and took him 
away to China ; and the island had for some time to 
pay an annual tribute to that country. At that time 
the Chinese exported from Ceylon a large quantity of 
the kaolin for pottery, which still abounds in the 
island. The close connection in early times between 
the island and the great Eastern Empire constitutes 
a very interesting episode. Fa-hien, the Chinese 
monk-traveller, visited Ceylon in search of Buddhist 
books about 400 a..d., and abode two years in the island. 

Ceylon was, however, exposed chiefly to incursions 
of Malabar princes and adventurers with their fol- 
lowers from Southern India, who waged a constant 
and generally successful contest with the Sinhalese. 
The northern and eastern portions of the island at 
length became permanently occupied by the Tamils, 
who placed a prince of their own on the Kandyan 
throne, and so far had the ancient power of the king- 
dom declined, that when the Portuguese first appeared 
in Ceylon, in 1505, the island was divided under no 
less than seven separate rulers. Ceylon, in the 
Middle Ages, was *' the Tyre of Asia." 

For 150 years the Portuguese occupied and con- 
trolled the maritime districts of Ceylon, but it was 
more of a military occupation than a regular govern- 
ment, and martial law chiefly prevailed. The army 
of Boman Catholic ecclesiastics introduced under 
Portuguese auspices alone made any permanent im- 
pression on a people who were only too ready to 
embrace a religion which gave them high-sounding 
honorific baptismal names, and interfered seldom, if 
at all, with their continued observance of Buddhistic 
feasts and ceremonies. The Portuguese established 



Past History, 6 

royal monopolies in cinnamon, pepper, and musk; 
exporting besides cardamoms, sapan-wood, areca nuts, 
ebony, elephants, ivory, gems, pearls, and small 
quantities of tobacco, silk, and tree cotton (^' kopok " 
of modem times). 

The Dutch, who by 1656 had finally expelled the 
Portuguese rulers from the island, which the Lisbon 
authorities had said ''they had rather lose all India 
than imperil," pursued a far more progressive ad- 
ministrative policy ; though, as regards commerce, it 
was selfish and oppressive. Still confined to the low 
country (the king of Kandy defying the new as he 
had done the previous European invaders), the Dutch 
did much to develop cultivation and to improve the 
means of communication — more especially by canals 
in their own maritime territory — while establishing a 
lucrative trade with the interior. The education of 
the people occupied a good deal of official attention, 
as also their Christianization through a staff of Dutch 
chaplains ; but the system of requiring a profession 
of the Protestant religion before giving employment 
to any natives speedily confirmed the native love of 
dissimulation, and created a nation of hypocrites, so 
that the term " Government Christian," or " Buddhist 
Christian," is common in some districts of Ceylon to 
this day. 

The first care of the Dutch, however, was to estab- 
lish a lucrative commerce with Holland, and their 
vessels were sent not only to Europe, but also to 
Persia, India, and the Far East ports. Cinnamon 
was the great staple of export,* next came pearls (in 

* The peeling of cinnamon, the selling or exporting of a single 
stick, save by the appointed officers, or even the wilful injury of a 
cinnamon plant, were made crimes punishable by death by the 
Datoh. 



6 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the years which gave successful pearl-oyster fisheries 
in the Gulf of Mannar) ; then followed elephants, 
pepper, areca or betel nuts, jaggery-sugar, sapan- 
wood and timber generally, arrack spirit, choya-roots 
(a substitute for madder), cardamoms, cinnamon oil, 
&c. The cultivation of coflfee, indigo, and even some 
tea was begun, but not carried on to such an extent 
as to benefit the exports. 

Agriculture was promoted by the Dutch for an 
essentially selfish purpose, but nevertheless good re- 
sulted to the people from the system of forced labour, 
as in the case of the planting of coco-nut palms along 
the western coast, from Colombo southwards, which, 
so late as 1740, was described by Governor Van 
Imhofl^ as waste-land to be surveyed and divided 
among the people, who were bound to plant it up. 
At the end of last century, when the British super- 
seded the Dutch in the possession of the maritime 
provinces of Ceylon, the whole of the south-western 
shore, for nearly 100 miles, presented the unbroken 
grove of palms which is seen to this day. 

From 1797 to 1802 Ceylon was placed under the 
East India Company, who administered it from Fort 
St. George, Madras ; but in the latter year it was 
made a Crown colony, and it soon became evident 
there could be no settled peace until the tyrant king 
on the Kandyan throne— hated by his own chiefs and 
people — was deposed, and the whole island brought 
into subjection to the British Crown. This was 
accomplished in 1815, when, at the instigation of the 
Eandyan chiefs and people themselves, Wikkrama 
Sinha, the last king, was captured, deposed, and exiled 
by the British to Southern India. 

So great was the value attached to Ceylon as the 



Past History. 7 

'' key of India/' as well as on account of the supposed 
fabulous wealth, in precious stones and valuable 
produce, available in the interior, that, at the general 
peace, Britain chose to give up Java to the Dutch, 
and retain this little island, so inferior in area, popu- 
lation, and natural resources. 



CHAPTER n. 

THE ISLAND IN 1796, 1815, AND SEVENTY YEARS LATER. 

Extent and topographical features — Condition of the island, previoua 
to, and after seventy years of British rule, contrasted. 

Having now arrived at the British period, it may be 
well to give some idea of the condition of Ceylon and 
its people in the early part of this century, and to 
compare the same with what is realized after British 
government has been established for seventy -two 
years throughout the whole island. 

The position of Ceylon as a " pearl-drop on the 
brow of India," with which continent it is almost 
connected by the island of Bamisseram and the coral 
reef called Adam's Bridge, is familiar to all who have 
ever glanced at a map of Asia. To that great 
continent it may be said to be related as Great Britain 
is to Europe, or Madagascar to Africa. In extent it 
comprises nearly sixteen million acres, or 24,702 
square miles, apart from certain dependent islands, 
such as the Maldives. The total area is about five- 
sixths of that of Ireland, but is equal to nearly 
thirty-seven times the superficial extent of the island 
of Mauritius, which sometimes contests with Ceylon 
the title of the *' Gem of .the Indian Ocean." One- 
sixth of this area, or about 4,000 square miles, is 
comprised in the hilly and mountainous zone which i& 



The Island in 1796, 1815, and Seventy Years later. 9 

situated about the centre of the south of the island, 
while the maritime districts are generally level, and 
the northern end of the island is broken up into a 
flat, narrow peninsula and small islets. Within the 
central zone there are 150 mountains or ranges 
between 8,000 and 7,000 feet in altitude, with ten 
peaks rising over the latter limit. The highest 
mountain is Fidurutaldgala, 8,296 feet, or nearly 
1,000 feet higher than Adam's Peak (7,353 feet), which 
was long considered the highest, because to voyagers 
approaching the coast it was always the most con- 
spicuous, mountain of Ceylon. 

The longest river, the Mahaveliganga (the Ganges 
of Ptolemy's maps), has a course of nearly 150 miles, 
draining about one- sixth of the area of the island 
before it reaches the sea at Trincomalee on the east 
coast. There are five other large rivers running to 
the west and south, besides numerous tributaries and 
smaller streams. The rivers are not favourable for 
navigation, save near the sea, where they expand into 
backwaters, which were taken advantage of by the 
Dutch for the construction of their system of canals 
all round the western and southern coasts. 

There are no natural inland lakes, save what 
remain of magnificent artificial tanks in the north 
and east of the island, and the backwaters referred 
to on the coast. The lakes which add to the beauty 
of Colombo, Kandy, and the Sanatarium, Nuwara 
Efiya, are artificial or partly so. 

Most of the above description was true of Ceylon 
at the beginning of the century even as it is now ; but 
in other respects how altered! It is impossible 
to get full and exact information as to the condition 
in which the British found the island and its people 



10 



Ceylon in the Jvbilee Year. 



in the early years, and up to the subjugation of the 
Kandyan division in 1815. But from the best author- 
ities at our command we have compiled the following 
tabular statement to show at a glance a few of the 
salient points in which the change is most striking, 
by far the greater part of the change having taken 
place within the reign of Queen Victoria : — 





CEYLON. 






i 


In 1796—1816. 


in 1887. 


Population . . 


From 1 to 1 mil- 


2,960,000 




lion 




No. of houiei . . . 


20,000 (tiled) 


600,000 


Population of the capi- 
tal, Colombo 






28,000 


120,000 


Military force . . . 


6,000 


1,150 


Coit of ditto . 


• • 


£160,000 


£100,000 


Imperial Share . 




£80,000 


£40,000 


Volunteer Corpi 




nil 


G80 efficients 


Co0t .... 




— 


£4,000 


Police .... 




nil 


1,650 


Coit . . . 







£60,000 


Beyenue . . . 




£226,000 


£1,300,000 


Expenditure . . 




£820,000 


£1,280,000 


Trade :— 






Imports — valu«^ 


£266,790 


£4,700,000 


Exports M 


£206,588 


£8,700,000 
(local Customs* value, 
really worth much 
more) 


Boadi 


Band and gravel 
tracks 


Metalled. 1,850 miles 




Gravelled, 900 miles 






Natural, 700 miles 


Bridges 


none 


Too numerous to men- 
tion 


Bailways 


none 


181 miles 


Canals 


120 miles 


170 miles 


Tonnage of shipping 






entered and cleared . 


75,000 tons 


4,000,000 tons 


OoTernmcnt Sayings 






Bank :-— 






Deposits .... 


nil 


£210,000 


No. of Depositors 


nil 


11,000 


Post Office Bavingi 






Banks 


—. 


73 






— - 


Depositors 5087 



The Island in 1796, 1815, and Seventy Years later. 11 





In 1796—1816. 


Tn 1887. 


Exchange and Deposit 






Bank Offices . . . 




12 


Annual volume of husi- 






ness in Colombo 






Banks' Clearing- 






house 




about B60,000,000 


Oovemment note issue 


— 


B4760,000 


Educational expendi- 


£3,000 


£70,000 


ture 


(for schools and 
clergy) 




No. of schools 


170 


2,200 


No. of scholars . 


2,000 


120,000 


The Press .... 


Govt. Gazette 


36 newspapers and 




only 


periodicals 


Medical expenditure 


£1,000 


£60,000 


No. of civil hospitals 


t 




and dispensaries 


nil 


120 


1 


[Civil servants: 






*• 

g 
« 


Bevenue officers 


6 


48 




judges, magis- 






t5 


trates, (%C. . . 


6 


40 


Charitable allowances 


£3,000 


£8,000 


from general re- 






venue 


No Poor Law 


Friend in Need Society 
for Voluntary Be- 
lief, £2,000 
No Poor Law 


Post offices .... 


4 


130 


Total No. of letters . 




16,000,000 


Money order offices 


— 


116 


Telegraph wires . . . 


nil 


1,200 miles 


No. of newspapers des- 






patched .... 




70,000 


Area cultivated (ex- 






clusive of natural 






pasture) 


400,000 acres 


3,100,000 acres 


Live stock : — 






Horses,' cattle, 






sheep, goats, 






swine, &g. 


260,000 


1,600,000 


Ca 


rts and carriages 


60 


20,000 



[For a fuller statistical statement, see the ''Summary of Infor- 
mation respecting Ceylon,*' published as Appendix ;• and for more 
•detailed information still, see the latest edition of Ferguson's " Ceylon 
Handbook and Directory."] 



* Of 13,000 horses imported between 1862 and 1887, the greater 
portion have been bought by native gentlemen, traders, coach- 
•owners, <&c. 



12 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

There is of coorBe an immense amount of improva- 
ment which cannot be tabulated, even if we extended 
our comparison in this form to much greater length. 




The greatest material change from the Ceylon of pre- 
Sritish days to the Ceylon of the present time is most 
certainly in respect of means of internal commnoi-^ 



The Island in 1796, 1816, and Seventy Years later. 18 

•cation. If, according to Sir Arthur Gordon (as quoted 
by Charles Eingsley in '' At Last ")> the first and 
most potent means of extending civilization is found 
in roads— the second in roads— the third again in 
roads, Sir Edward Barnes, when Governor of Ceylon 
<1824 to 1881), was a ruler who well understood his 
4uty to the people, and he was followed at intervals 
by worthy successors. 

When the English landed in Ceylon in 1796, there 
was not in the whole island a single practicable road, 
and troops in their toilsome marches between the 
fortresses on the coast dragged their cannon through 
^eep sand along the shore. Before Sir Edward 
Barnes resigned his government in 1881, every town 
of importance was approached by a carriage-road. 
He had carried a first-class macadamized road from 
€olombo to Eandy, throwing a ''bridge of boats," 
which exists to this day, over the Kelani river near 
Colombo, erecting other bridges and culverts too 
numerous to mention en route, and constructing, 
through the genius of General Eraser, a beautiful 
satin-wood bridge of a single span across the Maha- 
Teliganga (the largest river in Ceylon) at Peradeniya, 
near Eandy. On this road (72 miles in length) on 
the 1st of February, 1882, the Colombo and Eandy 
mail-coach — the first mail-coach in Asia — was started; 
and it continued to run successfully till the road was 
superseded by the railway in 1867. 

There can be no doubt that the permanent conquest 
of the Eandyan country and people, which had baffled 
the Portugese and Dutch for 800 years, was effected 
through Sir Edward Barnes's military roads. A 
Eandyan tradition, that their conquerors were to be 
a people who should make a road through a rocky 



14 



Ceylon i 



! Jubilee Year. 



hill, was Bhrewdly tamed to aoconnt, and tnnnels 
formed featares on two of the cait-routes into the 
previonsly almoBt impenetrable hill-country. The 




spirit of the Highland chiefs of Ceylon, as of Scotland 
eeventy years earlier, was effectually broken by means 
of military roads into their districts ; and althongb 



The Island in 1796, 1816, and Seventy Years later. 15 

the military garrison of Ceylon has gone down from 
about 6,000 troops to 1,000, and, indeed, although 
for months together the island has been left with not 
more than a couple of hundred of artillerymen, no 
serious trouble has been given for nearly seventy 
years by the previously warlike Kandyans or the 
Ceylonese generally. 

So much for the value of opening up the country 
from a military point of view. Governor Barnes, 
however, left an immense deal to do in bridging the 
rivers in the interior, and in extending district roads, 
of which not much was attempted until the arrival of 
his worthiest successor. Sir Henry Ward. This 
governor, with but limited means, did a great deal to 
open up remote districts, and to bridge the Maha- 
veliganga at Gampola and Katugastotte, as well as 
many other rivers which in the wet season were well- 
nigh impassable. He thus gave an immense impetus 
to the planting enterprize, which may be said practi- 
cally to have taken its rise from the year of the 
Queen's accession, 1887. For the restoration and 
construction of irrigation works to benefit the rice 
cultivation of the Sinhalese and Tamils, Sir Henry 
Ward did more than any of his predecessors. He 
also began the railway to Eandy, which was success- 
fully completed in the time of his successors. Sir 
Charles MacCarthy and Sir Hercules Bobinson. In 
the latter, Ceylon was fortunate enough to secure one 
of the most active and energetic governors that ever 
ruled a Crown colony. 

Sir Hercules Bobinson left his mark in every 
province and nearly every district of the country, in 
new roads, bridges, public buildings, and especially 
in the repair of irrigation tanks and channels, and 



16 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the provision of sluices. He extended the railway 
some seventeen miles, and he laid the foundation of 
the scheme through which, under his successor, Sir 
William Gregory, the Colombo Breakwater was 
begun ; and through the engineering skill of Sir John 
Ooode, and his local representative, Mr. John Kyle, 
this latter work has ensured for the capital of Ceylon 
one of the safest, most convenient, and commodious 
artificial harbours in the world. 

To Sir William Gregory belongs the distinction of 
having spent more revenae on reproductive public 
works than any other governor of Ceylon. The roads 
in the north and east of the island, which were chiefly 
gravel and sand tracks, were completed in a per- 
manent form, and nearly every river was bridged. 
The North-Central Province, a purely Sinhalese rice- 
growing division of the country, was called into ex- 
istence, and large amounts were invested in tanks 
and roads ; planting roads were extended ; about fifty 
miles added to the railway system, and preliminary 
arrangements made for a further extension of some 
sixty-seven miles, forty-two of which have since been 
undertaken and completed. When Governor Gregory 
left in 1877, there were few rivers of any importance 
teft unbridged, a large extent of previously unoccupied 
country had been opened up for cultivation, and an im- 
petus given to both natives and the European colonists 
in the extension of cultivation, especially of new pro- 
ducts, which alone has saved the island from a serious 
collapse in the years of commercial depression and 
blight on coffee which have followed. Since 1877 
not many miles of new road have been added, 
although Governor Gordon has improved existing 
roads, and constructed some important bridges. 



The Island in 1796, 1815, and Seventy Years later. 17 

especially in the new and rising Kelani Valley tea 
district; but it is something to say that, whereas 
the Bev. James Gordiner, chaplain to the Governor 
of Ceylon in 1807, could write, *' Strictly speaking 
there are no roads in Ceylon," now, after about 
ninety years of British rule, some 1,300 miles of first- 
class metalled roads, equal to any in the world, have 
been constructed, besides about 900 miles of gravelled 
ro^ds for light traffic, supplemented by 600 miles of 
natural tracks available in dry weather to traverse 
districts where as yet there is little or no traffic. The 
main roads are those from Colombo to Batticoloa vid 
Batnapura, Haputale, and BaduUa, right across the 
island ; from Colombo to Trincomalee vid Eandy, and 
another branch vid Kunmegala, also right across the 
breadth of the island, but north instead of south of 
the Central Province ; from Jaflfna southwards through 
the centre of the island to Kandy, and thence to 
Nuwara Eliya and Badulla, and by a less frequented 
route to Hambantota on the south coast ; from Kandy 
to Mann&r on the north-west coast — the great immi- 
gration route; and the main roads on the coast, 
Colombo to Galle and Hambantota, and north to 
Mann&r and almost to Jaffna. Subsidiary first-class 
roads, especially in the Central Province, are too 
numerous to mention. 

The benefit which this network of roads has con- 
ferred on the people, it is impossible to over-estimate. 
Secluded districts have been opened up, and markets 
afforded for produce which previously was too often 
left to waste ; settlements, villages^ and even large 
towns, have sprung up within the last fifty years 
(during our good Queen's reign) alongside roads where, 
previously, all was jungle and desolation, and means 

3 



18 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

of employment have been afforded to a people who 
had scarcely ever seen a coin. 

As in India, so on a smaller scale in Ceylon, it is a 
recognized fact that there is no more effectual pre- 
ventive of famine than internal means of communi- 
cation, whether by road, rail, canal, or navigable 
river. There has probably never been a year in 
which India, within its widely-extended borders, did 
not produce enough food to supply all its population ; 
but unfortunately there has been no means of getting 
the superabundance of one district transferred to the 
famine area in another part of the continent. So in 
Ceylon, in years gone by, there has been great scarcity 
and mortality in remote districts without the central 
Government at Colombo being made properly aware 
of the fact, or being able to supply prompt relief. 
The mortality from fever and food scarcity in some 
parts of the country must thus have been very great 
before British times. 

Roads, again, are great educators, but in this they 
are surpassed by railways in an Oriental land. The 
railways in India and Ceylon are doing more in these 
modem days to level caste and destroy superstition 
than all the force of missionaries and schoolmasters, 
much as these latter aid in this good work. 

The railway between Colombo and Kandy, projected 
originally about forty years ago, was not seriously 
taken in hand till the time of Sir Henry Ward. 
After many mistakes and alterations of plans, it was 
successfully completed under the skilful engineering 
guidance of Mr. G. L. Molesworth, CLE. (now con- 
sulting engineer to the Government of India), Mr. 
W. F. Faviell being the successful contractor. The 
total length is 74J miles, and, including a good deal 



The Island in 1796, 1815, and Seventy Years later, 19 

of money unavoidably wasted in dissolving and pay- 
ing off a company, it cost the colony, from first to 
last, as much as ^91,788,413; but the line (on the 
broad Indian gauge of 5 ft. 6 in.) is most substantially 
constructed, including iron-girder bridges, viaducts, 
a series of tunnels, and an incline rising 1 in 45 
for 12 miles into the mountain zone, which gives 
this railway a prominent place among the remarkable 
lines of the world. 

Since 1867 the railway has been extended by Sir 
Hercules Eobinson, on the same gauge, for 17 miles 
from Peradeniya to Gampola and Nawalapitiya, rising 
towns in the Central Province ; and by Sir William 
Gregory, for 17 J miles from Kandy to Matale, a town 
on the borders of the Central Province : while in the 
low country the same governor constructed a seaside 
line from Colombo, through a very populous district, 
to Kalutara, 27J miles, and also some 3J miles of 
Wharf and Breakwater branches. 

To Governor Gregory's time also belongs the in- 
ception and practical commencement of the extension 
from Nawalapitiya to the principality of Uva, 67 
miles, of which 41J were commenced in 1880, and 
finished in 1885. This line includes two long inclines, 
with gradients of 1 in 44, a tunnel 614 yards long, 
and the present terminus at Nanu-oya is 5,600 feet 
above sea-level, within four miles of the sanatarium 
and town of Nuwara Eliya (6,200 feet above sea- 
level), and on the borders of Uva, which rich country, 
however, cannot properly be served until a further 
extension of 25J miles to Haputale is carried out, as 
it is earnestly hoped that it may be very shortly. 
Governor Gordon, after some doubt and delay at first, 
has been thoroughly convinced of the importance of 
this work. 



20 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

In all there are 184 miles of railway open in 
Ceylon, but only 91 may be said to have been work- 
ing long enough to afford a fair test of the traffic and 
the benefit to colonists, natives, and the country gene- 
rally. The seaside line, however, has a wonderfully 
large passenger traffic, and if only extended to Ben- 
tota, and still more to Galle, would also secure profit- 
able freight. With the revival of planting prosperity 
through tea, the Nanu-oya and Mfitale lines are also 
certain to be fully employed, although the first-named 
must be extended into Uva before a full return can be 
got for the outlay. 

The main line to Kandy has more than repaid it& 
cost in direct profit, apart from the immense benefits 
it has conferred. It is sometimes said that this rail- 
way and other lines in Ceylon, constructed as they 
were mainly for the planting enterprise and with the 
planters' money, confer far more benefit on the Euro- 
peans than on the native population. An answer to 
this statement, and an evidence of the immense 
educating power of our railways, is found in the fact 
that during the past twenty years well nigh twenty- 
six millions of passengers have been carried over the 
lines, of whom all but an infinitesimal proportion 
were natives (Sinhalese and Tamils chiefly). On the 
Kandy line alone it would have taken the old coach,, 
travelling both ways twice daily, and filled each time^ 
several hundred years to carry the passengers who 
have passed between the ancient capitals and pro- 
vinces in the past twenty years. There was scarcely 
a Kandyan chief or priest who had ever seen, or, at 
any rate, stood by the sea until the railway into the 
hiU country was opened in 1867, whereas, for some 
time after the opening, the interesting sight was often 



The Island in 1796, 1815, and Seventy Years later. 21 

presented to Colombo residents of groups of Kandy- 
ans standing by the sea-shore in silent awe and 
admiration of the vast ocean stretched out before 
them, and the wonderful vessels of all descriptions in 
Colombo harbour. 

In pointing out that the Dutch (equally with the 
Portuguese) constructed no roads, we must not forget 
that the former, true to their home experience, con- 
structed and utilized a system of canals through 
the maritime provinces along the western and south- 
western coast. In this they were greatly aided by 
the back-waters, or lagoons, which are a feature 
on the Ceylon coast, formed through the mouths of 
the rivers becoming blocked up, and the waters find- 
ing an outlet to the sea at different points, often miles 
away from the line of the main stream. The canals 
handed over by the Dutch at first fell into comparative 
disuse, but within the last thirty years they have 
been fully repaired and utilized, and there are now 
about 170 miles of canal in the island. 

With the construction of roads wheeled traffic 
became possible, and a large number of the Sinhalese 
speedily found very profitable employment, in con- 
nection with the planting industry mainly, as owners 
and drivers of bullock carts, of which there must be 
from 15,000 to 20,000 in the island, besides single 
bullock-hackeries for passenger traffic. In nothing is 
the increase of wealth among the natives more seen, 
in the Western, Central, and Southern Provinces, 
than in the number of horses and carriages now 
owned by them. Thirty or forty years ago, to see a 
Ceylonese with a horse and conveyance of his own 
was rare indeed ; now the number of Burghers, 
Sinhalese, and Tamils driving their own carriages, in 



22 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the towns especially, is very remarkable. The 
greater number of the horses imported daring the 
past twenty-five years — ^the imports during that time 
numbering 18,000 — have certainly passed to the 
people of the country. 



CHAPTER III. 

SOCIAL PBOOBESS IN NINETY YEARS. 

Population — ^Buildings — Postal and Telegraphic services — Savings- 
banks — Banking and Currency — Police and Military defence 
— Medical and Educational achievements — ^Laws and Grime. 

Having thus described more particularly the vast ' 
change effected in British times by the construction 
of communications all over the island, we must touch 
briefly on the evidences of social progress given in 
our table (pages 10, 11). 

The increase in population speaks for itself. It is 
very difficult, however, to arrive at a correct estimate 
of what the population W9.s at the beginning of the 
century, as the Dutch could have no complete returns, 
not having any control over the Kandyan provinces. 
The first attempt at accurate numbering was in 1824, 
by Governor Barnes, and the result was a total of 
851,440, or, making allowance for omissions due to 
the hiding of people through fear of taxation, &c., 
say about a million of both sexes and all ages. As 
regards the large estimate of the ancient population 
of Ceylon located in the northern, north-central, and 
eastern districts, now almost entirely deserted, we are 
bv no means inclined, with the recollection of the 



Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 




Social Progress in Ninety Years. 25 

■famous essay on the " Populousness of Ancient 
i^ations oefore us, to accept the estimates published 
l)y Sir Emerson Tennent and other enthusiastic 
writers. There can be no doubt, however, that a 
Tery considerable population found means of existence 
in and around the ancient capitals of Ceylon, and the 
^eat Tank region of the north and east, a region 
which affords scope for a great, though gradual, ex- 
tension in the settlement of both Sinhalese and 
Tamils in the future. At present it must be remem- 
bered that^ully two-thirds of the population are found 
in the Western, Southern, and Central Provinces, 
occupying a good deal less than half ihe area of the 
island, and that there are large districts, once the 
best-cultivated with rice, with now perhaps only half 
■a dozen souls to the square mile. 

As regards the number of inhabited houses, in 1824 
ihete were not more than 20,000 with tiled roofs in 
i;he island ; that number has multiplied manifold, but 
ihe half-million now given refer to all descriptions of 
inhabited houses, most of these being huts roofed 
with coconut leaves. The improvement in the resi- 
dences of a large proportion of the people is, however, 
very marked : among one class the contrast between 
ihe old and modern homes has been well described as 
being as great as that between a begrimed native 
-chatty (clay vessel) and a bright English tea-kettle. 

In the town of Kandy, which has now about 4,000 
dwelling-houses — the large majority substantially 
built, many of two stories — eighty years ago no one 
Jbut the tyrant-king was allowed to have a tiled roof, 
Or any residence better than a hut. In all the towns, 
and many of the villages of the island, substantial 
public buildings have been erected: revenue offices. 



26 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

court-houses, hospitals and dispensaries, prisons,, 
schools, and post and telegraph offices. A great 
change for the better in respect of these institutions 
was effected by Governors Eobinson and Gregory, 

Further evidences of the good done through a 
liberal and enlightened administration we find in an 
admirable internal postal service, made possible by 
the roads through which every town and village of 
any consequence is served, the total number of post- 
offices being 111, supplemented by 16 telegraph sta- 
tions, there being 1,100 miles of telegraph wire in 
the island ; while, in addition, the Fostal-Telegrapb 
Department has opened Postal savings-banks in all 
the towns and important villages. This is apart 
from a long-existing Government savings-bank, with 
about 10,000 depositors, owning deposits to the 
amount of perhaps two million rupees. 

With the rise of local trade and foreign commerce, 
chiefly through the export of planting products, came 
the need of banking and exchange facilities, and the 
call for these led to the establishment of a local Bank 
over forty years ago. This was superseded, however, 
soon after by the Oriental Bank Corporation, which 
gradually controlled by far the larger share of local 
business, so that the Ceylon branches became among 
the most important and profitable of this well-known 
Eastern bank. This gradually tempted its managers 
to depart from legitimate business by lending its 
capital too freely on planting, produce, and estates, 
and when this bank closed its doors in March, 1880, no* 
where was the shock felt more widely or acutely than 
throughout Ceylon. The effect and distrust among 
the natives would have been greatly aggravated were 
it not for the bold step taken by Sir Arthur Gordon. 



Social Progress in Ninety Years. 27 

in extending an official guarantee to the bank's note 
issue, which eventuated in a Government note issue 
soon after, much to the advantage of the people and 
the exchequer, as will yet be seen. So far, the circu- 
lation of Government notes is rapidly approximating 
to five millions of rupees. Nor is any loss likely to 
be sustained from taking up the notes of the Oriental 
Bank, which, in fact, ought never to have closed its 
doors. The New Oriental Bank Corporation founded 
upon it, is already prospering, and the plantations 
have been mainly taken over by a Limited Company, 
and are likely to be worked at a good profit. Ceylon 
has suffered a good deal at times from plantation 
companies, chiefly through the " Ceylon Company, 
Limited," which, though so named, was really 
founded to take up bad business in Mauritius, where 
its heaviest losses were sustained. Other banks 
and agencies prospering in Ceylon are those of the 
Chartered Mercantile Bank of London, Ladia, and 
China, the Bank of Madras, and the National Bank 
of India, besides mercantile agencies of other 
Eastern banks. It may be mentioned that Sir 
Hercules Eobinson gave Ceylon the benefit of a 
decimal currency in rupees and cents of a rupee, thus 
placing it in advance of India, where the cumbrous 
subdivisions of the rupee into annas, pice, and pies 
still prevail ; in this respect Ceylon is indeed in 
advance of the mother-country. 

We need scarcely say that, at the beginning of 
British rule, there was no post-office, and for many 
years after, the service was of the most primitive, 
although expensive, kind ; nor were there police or 
volunteer corps in those days ; but there was an army 
corps (infantry, artillery, and even cavalry, altogether 



"28 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

5,000 to 6,000* men) kept up for many years, out of all 
proportion to the necessities of the case. The Home 
Oovernment had the idea seventy years ago that the 
hidden wealth of Ceylon would enable a handsome 
annual subsidy to be paid to the treasury of the 
mother-country after all local expenses of government 
were defrayed. In place of that, so long as the govern- 
ment remained a mere military dependency, it was 
a dead loss to, and drain on, the imperial treasury. 
By degrees, however, it was seen that four British 
and as many native (Malay, Tamil, and Kaffir) regi- 
ments were not required, and, the force being cut 
down, it was decided by a commission appointed by 
the Secretary of State in 1865, that Ceylon should 
bear all the military expenditure within its bounds, 
the local force being fixed at one regiment of British 
infantry, one of native (the Ceylon Eifles), and one 
brigade of artillery, with a major-general and staff. 
The Ceylon Eifles again were disbanded a few years 
later, in 1873. 

The island, therefore, has cost the Home Government 
nothing for the last twenty years : on the other hand, 
the force in Ceylon has been utilized very frequently 
for imperial and inter-colonial purposes. This will be 
alluded to later on, but we may mention here that 
Governor Gordon was instrumental, in view of the 
recent depression of the revenue, in getting the 
military contribution reduced to 600,000 rupees in 
place of about a million. The former amount is now 
counted as a naval, as well as military, contribu- 
tion, and is a very fair appraisement of the responsi- 
bility of Ceylon, considering that no internal trouble 
beyond the capacity of police and volunteers can be 
feared. 



Social Progress in Ninety Years, 2^ 

In no direction has more satisfactory work been 
done in Ceylon by the British Government than? 
through its Medical and Educational Departments. 
Here are branches which give the natives a vivid idea 
of the superiority of English over Portuguese or 
Dutch rule, and, to judge by the way in which hos- 
pitals, dispensaries, and schools are made use of, it 
is evident that the Sinhalese and Tamils value their 
privileges. 

Of civil, lying-in, contagious diseases, and other hos- 
pitals, with lunatic and leper asylums, and out-door 
dispensaries, there are now 120 in the island, in or at 
which some 175,000 persons are treated annually,, 
more than two- thirds being, of course, for trifling ail- 
ments at the dispensaries. 

In this connection, the Ceylon Medical College^ 
founded by Sir Hercules Eobinson in 1870, most 
heartily supported by his successor. Governor Gregory,, 
and liberally endowed and extended by two wealthy 
Sinhalese gentlemen, Messrs. De Soyza and Eajepakse,. 
is worthy of mention. Out of some 240 Ceylonese 
students entered, about sixty have qualified and ob- 
tained licences to practise medicine and surgery; 
about as many more are hospital assistants and dis- 
pensers ; some have taken service under the Straits' 
Government; while others have gone home to qualify 
for degrees at British Universities. The college has 
a principal and seven lecturers; and the Ceyloneso 
have already shown a peculiar aptitude for the pro- 
fession, surgeons of special, even of European emi- 
nence, having come from their ranks. We should 
mention here the good work done by Dr. Green, M.D.> 
of the American Mission, in his medical classes for 
native students long before the Government College 



30 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

was founded. (See Appendix for reference to medical 
benefactors.) 

In education, generally, although there is still an 
immense deal to do, Ceylon is far in advance as com- 
pared with India. This has been chiefly through the 
agency of the several Christian Missions at work in 
the island, which have done a noble work, more 
especially in female education; but Sir Hercules 
Eobinson gave an immense impetus to education by 
the establishment of an admirable grant-in-aid system, 
while Sir W. Gregory extended the work, multiplying 
especially Government vernacular schools. Latterly, 
special attention has been given to practical, and even 
technical, education : an Agricultural Training School 
has been started, and in connection with Experimen- 
tal Gardens (under the auspices of the separate 
Botanic Gardens' Departments) in different parts of 
the country, much good is likely to be effected. 
Industrial schools for other branches are also encour- 
aged. The great improvements in the educational, as 
well as in some other special, departments of recent 
years, is very much owing to the employment, as their 
heads, of public servants with local experience, in place 
of importing "fresh blood," a penchant which cost 
the colony a great deal previously. Under that system 
a half-pay naval officer was sent out as Director of 
Prisons, and an impracticable theorist as Director of 
Public Instruction, while other departments have simi- 
larly suffered. At present the proportion in Ceylon 
is one pupil to every twenty-eight of population ; in 
India it is about one to every 150, while in Great 
Britain it is, we suppose, one to every six or seven. 
In other words, while practically all children of school- 
going age are being served educationally in Great 



Social Progress in Ninety Years. 31 

Britain, only 10 per cent, of those in Ceylon go to 
school, while not much more than 1 per cent, in 
India are being instructed. 

Visitors always remark on the large number of the 
people in Ceylon, the domestic servants especially, 
who understand and speak English, as compared with 
servants in India. In ancient times each Buddhist 
temple had its pansala or school ; but although such 
pansalas are still kept up in some low-country dis- 
tricts, in the Kandyan country for many years the 
priests have neglected their duty in teaching and 
other respects, being entirely independent of the 
people through the endowments in land left them by 
the Kandyan kings, which have in this case proved a 
curse instead of a blessing to the priests themselves, as 
well as to the people. These ** Buddhist Temporali- 
ties," now being worse than wasted, will, it is hoped, 
ere long be utilized by express ordinance for the 
benefit of the mass of the people in promoting ver- 
nacular and perhaps technical education. In the 
low-country there are no endowments. 

Educated Ceylonese are now, in many cases, finding 
it difficult to secure openings in life suited to their 
taste : the legal profession has hitherto been the most 
popular, it being occupied almost entirely by them 
as notaries, attorneys or solicitors, advocates, barris- 
ters, and even judges. In this way Sir Eichard 
Morgan, bom and educated in Ceylon, rose to be 
attorney-general, chief justice, and knight. At this 
moment a Sinhalese gentleman is judge of the 
Supreme Court ; and other Ceylonese fill the impor- 
tant offices of attorney-general, and solicitor-general, 
while others are county judges, leading barristers, and 
solicitors. 



82 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

The Sinhalese fondness for litigation is proverbial ; 
their cases in court abound, even to disputing about- 
the fractional part of a coconut-tree. Grime gene- 
rally is represented by a daily average of about 2,000 
convicted prisoners in the gaols of the island, a large 
number being for petty thefts and assaults. The 
cost of the administration of justice for the criminal 
class — ^police, courts, gaols, &c. — cannot be less than 
E1,000,000, or about £80,000, per annum. A penal 
code after the fashion of that of India was arrangecl 
for by Sir Bruce Burnside, the present Chief Justice 
of the island, and successfully introduced in 1885 ; 
and codification of the civil laws — an urgent want — 
is expected shortly to be brought forward by Govern- 
ment. 



CHAPTEE IV. 

LEGISLATIVE AND GENERAL IMPROVEMENTS UNDER THE 
RULE OP SUCCESSIVE BRITISH GOVERNORS,* THE 
NEED OF PROMOTING CO-OPERATION AND GOOD 
FEELING BETWEEN DIVERSE CLASSES AND RACES. 

Among the political and social reforms introduced into 
Ceylon by the British during the present century 
may be mentioned the abolition by the first governor, 
the Hon. P. North, of torture and other barbarous 
punishments abhorrent to English feeling, and the 
relaxation during the time of his successor of the 
severe laws against Eomanists, twenty years before 
Catholic emancipation was granted in England. Trial 
by jury was first introduced by a new charter of jus- 
tice in 1811 ; but it was not till 1844 that all caste 
and clan distinctions in the jury-box and all slavery 
were finally abolished. 

A new and much improved charter of justice, the 
establishment of a Legislative Council with unofficial 
members, an order in Council abolishing compulsory 

* Lists of the British governors of the island, chief justices, com- 
manders of the troops, and executive councillors, together with the 
names of other official and non-official residents, who deserve to be 
jspecially mentioned as public benefactors, are given in Appendix lY. 

4 



84 Ceylon in the JvbUee Year. 

labour, the establishment of a free press, the relin- 
quishment of the cinnamon monopoly, the institution 
of a Government savings-bank and the Colombo 
Academy, all served to mark the years between 1880 
and 1840, when such enlightened governors as Sir 
Bobert Wilmot-Horton, and the Eight Hon. J. H. 
Stuart-Mackenzie, administered Ceylon affairs. 

During the next decade a tax on fishermen of one- 
tithe of all the fish taken was abolished ; the bonds of 
slavery were finally removed ; great efforts were made 
to extend education and medical relief to the masses, 
and the important planting industry took its first 
start; a wise and most useful law for the improve- 
ment of roads, exacting six days' labour per annum, 
or its value, from all able-bodied males between 
eighteen and fifty-five years of age, was passed ; the 
last national disturbance of the Kandyans was quickly 
suppressed without the loss of a single life ; the 
colony passed through a commercial and financial 
crisis, and on the ruins of the Bank of Ceylon the 
Oriental Bank Corporation arose. 

In 1860 there was commenced in Ceylon the most 
successful service with carrier-pigeons ever known in 
connection with the press. The Ceylon Observer 
carrier-pigeons travelled regularly between Galle (the 
mail port) and Colombo with budgets of news, includ- 
ing Crimean and Indian Mutiny war news, for over 
seven years, till 1867, when they were superseded by 
the telegraph. All official connection between the 
British Government and Buddhism was closed in 
1866, the year in which Sir Henry Ward commenced 
to rule, and a new impetus was given to Native and 
European industry by useful legislation. The resto- 
ration of irrigation works, the construction of roads^ 



Legislative and General Improvement 35 

the commencement of a railway^ the reorganization 
of the public service, the introduction of penny 
postage (with a halfpenny rate for newspapers), the 
establishment of steam navigation round the island 
and of telegraph communication between the principal 
towns, the reform of the Kandyan marriage laws, and 
the abolition of polyandry, also marked this period. 

The following decade, 1860-1870, is chiefly dis- 
tinguished for Governor Sir Hercules Eobinson's 
energetic and most useful administration, with 
measures for the civil registration of marriages, 
births, and deaths, and of titles to land ; the opening 
of the railway to Kandy; the publication by the 
people of Sinhalese and Tamil newspapers ; the for- 
mation of the towns of Colombo, Kandy, and Galle 
into municipalities, with Boards composed of elected 
and oflScial members ; the revival of gansabhawa, or 
village councils ; the adoption of a grant-in-aid 
scheme for promoting the education of the people ; 
the abolition of export duties ; the founding of the 
Ceylon Medical School; and the visit in 1870 of 
H.E.H. the Duke of Edinburgh. 

The next decade in the history of Ceylon has its 
interest in the very prosperous, busy, and successful 
government of Sir William Gregory. The first 
systematic census of the population was taken in 
1871. Measures were adopted for the conservation 
of forests and for preventing the extinction of elk, 
deer, elephants, &c. ; the registration of titles was 
provided for ; Colombo, Kandy, and Galle were much 
improved, arrangements for a good water-supply to 
each town being made ; while for the sanatarium 
(Nuwara Eliya) and seven other minor towns a bill 
was passed establishing Local Boards on the elective 



ii6 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

principle ; the gansabhawa, or village councils, were 
improved and encoaraged ; an immense impetus was 
given to rice cultivation, 100 village tanks being 
repaired every year, besides larger works ; the North- 
Central Province, in purely native interests, was 
formed, and the great lines of communication between 
the north and east were permanently opened; AnurM- 
hapura, the ancient capital, was cleared of jungle, 
and rendered a healthy revenue station; gaols, 
hospitals, and schools were greatly improved, gaol 
discipline being put on a new footing ; pilgrimages on 
a large scale injuriously affecting public health were 
discouraged and practically stopped ; scientific educa- 
tion was provided for ; temperance was promoted by 
the reduction of the number of licences granted to 
grog-shops; gas lighting was introduced into Colombo ; 
the stoppage of all payments from the revenue in aid 
of religion ("Disestablishment") was arranged for; 
the industry in the growth of new products — tea, 
cinchona, and cacao — took its first systematic start ; 
an enactment dealing with service tenures in con- 
nection with temples was passed ; road and railway 
extension were actively taken in hand; a public 
museum was erected and well filled at Colombo ; and 
in 1875 H.E.H. the Prince of Wales visited the 
island, and laid the first stone of the Colombo Break- 
water, designed and constructed by Sir John Coode, 
and since successfully completed (in 1886) by the 
resident engineer, Mr. Kyle. A Northern Arm and 
Graving-dock for the Imperial Navy (in supersession 
partly of Trincomalee), as well as for commercial 
purposes, though fully supported by the Admiralty, 
has yet (1887) to be commenced. 

Since 1880 the colony has suffered from financial 



Legislative and General Improvement. 87 




88 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

depression, due chiefly to the falling off in the coffee 
crops. A volunteer corps was established under 
Governor Longden's patronage ; but almost the only 
work of importance during his rule of six years was 
an extensive lunatic asylum, costing ^QOOfiOO (to 
finish) which is deemed much beyond the wants of 
the colony, being built on a scale likely rather to 
astonish than benefit poor rural Sinhalese lunatics, 
taken from jungle huts to be lodged in brick and 
mortar palaces. An increase to the fixed expenditure 
of the Colony made in 1878 in Governor Longden's 
time, including an addition of B10,000 to his own 
salary,* was to say the least injudicious, although 
sanctioned by the Legislature, and this was shown by 
the revenue depression which set in from the follow- 
ing year onwards. 

Sir Arthur Gordon assumed the Government of 
Ceylon at the end of 1883, and a period of renewed 
activity in useful legislation and material improve- 
ment was eagerly anticipated ; but the result up to 
date has not quite answered expectations. The im- 
portant laws dealing with " Buddhist Temporalities," 
a Civil Code, Excise and General Revenue Reform, 
have yet to appear. The railway extension, opened 
as far as Nanu-oya in 1886, has not yet been sanctioned 
into the important division of Uva (Uva was created a 
new province in February, 1886), notwithstanding the 
Governor's urgent and repeated requests, backed by 
his Executive Council and by reliable public opinion. 
A step in revision of taxation undertaken in 1885 has 

* Making the salary of the Governor of Ceylon B80,000per annum. 
Bather a contrast to that of the Datch Governors, which was £30 per 
month (besides rations and allowances), but then they were expected 
to make a fortune in other and secret ways. 



Legislative and Oeneral Improvement. 39 

not been well received or proved successful ; but a 
reduction in the military contribution, the issue of 
Government Currency Notes after the Governor's bold 
guarantee of the Oriental Bank Notes, and a measure 
of municipal reform, have naturally found acceptance. 
The great failure of Sir Arthur Gordon has been in 
not promoting and cementing that good feeling 
between the governing and governed classes, and 
especially between the different races and ranks, em- 
braced in the very varied community of Ceylon, 
which Sir William Gregory, above all his predecessors, 
was successful in fostering. In the time of the latter 
Governor, Europeans, Burghers (European descend- 
ants), and natives, co-operated more cordially, and 
supported the Government more trustfully, than at 
any period before or since. His successor, (Sir James 
Longden) was too antiquated and sleepy in his ideas 
to promote this desirable state of feeling, or any 
other movement beyond the bounds of red-tape official 
routine ; while Governor Gordon, by arbitrary, in- 
quisitorial proceedings early in his term of govern- 
ment, by his favour of ceremonial supported by high- 
caste natives, and by ill-judged special patronage of 
Buddhist priests at his levees, &c., has created distrust, 
and we fear has undone much of the good effected 
during 1872-1877. A frank, genial, straightforward 
administrator, free of all official prejudice or pre- 
dilection for outward (** caste ") show, recognizing 
merit wherever it is to be found, and good work for 
the benefit of the body-politic, no matter by whom 
promoted, has nowhere a more encouraging or fruitful 
iield to work in than Ceylon, and this is why, as has 
often been said, a governor, straight from " the free 
air of the British House of Commons/' has often 



40 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

proved a bright success in this first and most im- 
portant of Crown Colonies. It may not be known to 
people in England interested in our tropical depen- 
dencies, how much evil, cliques — official and otherwise 
— promoted to some extent by " club " life, are 
working, and are likely still further to work, in India 
and Ceylon. The Englishman carries his " club '' 
with him — it has been said — wherever he goes, and 
has the undoubted right to do so ; but it is a question 
whether in Crown Dependencies "public servants," 
not excluding the Queen's Eepresentative, drawing 
their salaries and pensions from taxes paid by the 
people at large, have the right to patronize clubs 
which practically exclude all Her Majesty's native- 
born subjects, without exception, no matter what 
their merit or degree ; and still more whether occult 
influences should dictate (through aide-de-camps and 
private secretaries), who are to be honoured, if not 
received, at " Queen's House." It was to the credit 
of Sir William Gregory that he never allowed himself 
to be restricted by the sneers of would-be colonial 
" society " dictators, but sought out and marked 
by his attentions merit and good work, wherever he 
found them. In this way Sinhalese, Tamils, and 
Burghers (and not merely a few " high caste " 
families favoured by narrow-minded officials), found 
their industry and integrity noticed by the Governor, 
who again had at his table, as honoured guests, the 
heads and chief workers in the various Missions and 
principal Educational Institutions, whether Christian 
or secular, Hindu or Buddhist, showing his personal 
interest in every thing or person calculated to 
advance the colony and people committed to his care 
by Her Most Gracious Majesty the Queen. 



Legislative and Oeneral Improvement 41 

In a short time after these pages appear, a new 
Governor for Ceylon will have to be selected, and it is 
to be hoped he may be one of the high-minded, liberal, 
progressive type, we have attempted to indicate. 



CHAPTER V. 

NATIVE AGRICULTURAL AND MANUFACTURING INTERBBTB. 

Paddy (rice) cultivation — Cinnamon — Coconut, Palmyra, Kitol, 
Arecanut, and other Palms — ^Essential oils — Tobacco — Cotton — 
Sugar-cane — Other Fruit-trees and Vegetables — Natural pasture 
— Local Manufactures. 

Whether or not Ceylon was in ancient times the 
granary of Soutb-Eastern Asia, certain it is that long 
before the Portuguese or Dutch, not to speak of the 
British, era, that condition had lapsed, and so far 
from the island having a surplus of food products, the 
British, like their European predecessors, had to 
import a certain quantity of rice from Southern India 
to feed their troops and the population of the capital 
and other chief towns.* There can be no doubt as to 
the large quantity of rice which could be grown around 
the network of tanks in the north and east, which 
have been lying for centuries broken and unused in 
the midst of unoccupied territory. 

Driven from the northern plains by the conquering 
Tamils, the Sinhalese, taking refuge in the mountain 
zone more to the south and west, found a country in 
many respects less suited for rice than for fruit and 
root culture ; but yet, under British, as under native, 

* Old Sinhalese records show that rice was imported into Ceylon 
from the Coromandel Coast in the second century before Christ. 



44 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

rule, rice or paddy-growing continues to be the one 
most general and favourite occupation of the Sin- 
halese people, as indeed it is of the Ceylon Tamils in 
the north and east of the island. Agriculture, in 
their opinion, is the most honourable of callings, and 
although in many districts fruit and root — that is, 
garden — culture would prove more profitable^ yet the 
paddy field is more generally popular. 

Nowhere in Ceylon are there tracts of alluvial lands 
so extensive as those which mark the banks and 
deltas of rivers in India, and the average return of 
rice per acre in Ceylon, under the most favourable 
circumstances, is considerably below the Indian 
average. It was the opinion of one of. the most ex- 
perienced of Ceylon civil servants — Sir Charles P.. 
Layard, who served in the island from 1829 to 1879 — 
that the " cultivation of paddy is now the least profit- 
able pursuit to which a native can apply himself; it 
is persevered in from habit, and because the value of 
time and labour never enters into his calculations.'" 
This view has been contested more recently (in 1886) 
by an experienced revenue officer, Mr. E. Elliott, who 
shows that rice cultivation is fairly profitable ; but 
his calculations refer chiefly to select districts, rather 
than to the island generally. On the principle of 
buying in the cheapest and selling in the dearest 
market, it would certainly appear that the people of 
Ceylon (with but few exceptions in the Matara, 
Batticaloa, and Jaffna districts) could more profitably 
turn their attention to plantation and garden products, 
such as coconuts, areca or betel nuts, pepper, cinna- 
mon, nutmeg, cacao, tea, cardamoms, and fruits of all 
tropical kinds (even putting tea on one side for the pre- 
sent) ; then selling the produce to advantage, they 



Native Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests. 45 

could buy rice from southern and northern India and 
Burmah more cheaply than they can produce it. But 
it is impossible, even if it were politic — which we doubt 
— to revolutionize the habits of a very conservative 
people in this way ; and therefore, so soon as the sale 
of forest land to planters, and the introduction of 
capital for the planting enterprise, put the Govern- 
ment in possession of surplus revenue, Sir Henry 
Ward acted wisely in turning his attention to the 
restoration and repair of such irrigation works in the 
neighbourhood of population, as he felt would at once 
be utilized for the increased production of grain. In 
this way he changed a large extent of waste land into 
an expanse of perennial rice culture, for the benefit of 
the industrious Mohammedans and Hindus of the 
Batticaloa district in the Eastern Province. Simi- 
larly, he spent large sums for the benefit of the Sin- 
halese rice cultivators in the southern districts. 

Sir Hercules Eobinson conceived a statesmanlike 
law by which expenditure on irrigation works, chiefly 
village tanks, on terms far more liberal to the people 
than any offered in India, formed a part of the annual 
budget. Most cordially was this policy supported by 
his successor. Sir William Gregory, who, moreover, 
entered on an undertaking of greater magnitude than 
any previously recorded in British times: namely, 
the formation of a new province around the ancient 
capital of Ceylon, and the restoration of tanks and 
completion of roads and bridges within its bounds, 
sufficient to give the sparse Sinhalese population 
every advantage in making a start in the race of 
prosperity. At a considerable expenditure, spread 
over four or five years, this was accomplished, and a 
population of some 60,000 Sinhalese were thereby more 



46 Ceylon in the Jvhilee Year. 

directly benefited than they had been by any of their 
rulers, native or European, for several centuries back. 
Curiously enough not the Sinhalese but the Tamils — 
who have been called " the Scotchmen of the East," 
from their enterprise in migrating and colonising — 
are likely to take chief advantage of the expenditure 
in this north-central region— an expenditure con- 
tinued by Governor Longden, and to a still more 
marked degree by Governor Gordon, who has entered 
on large and important works in restoring theKalawewa 
and Zodi-ella Irrigation tanks and channels. The 
formation of a permanent Irrigation Board for the 
colony, with a settled income in a proportion of the 
land revenue, is another step of the present governor 
in the interests of rice culture, more commendable 
for its motive, perhaps, than for the soundness of the 
political economy by which the arrangement can be 
defended. Special encouragement to other branches • 
of agriculture in certain districts would do much 
good ; but as yet Government and its revenue officers 
have not even established district Agricultural Shows 
for products and stock with suitable prizes. 

Governor Gregory also introduced a measure for 
substituting compulsory commutation for the rent- 
ing of the grain-tithes on a scale so liberal as to 
amount to a considerable lessening of taxation on 
locally-grown grain, which may be said now to be 
** protected " when compared with the tax on the 
imported article. The effect of the liberal policy to 
the local farmer, above described, on the part of 
successive governors, from Sir Henry Ward's time on 
to that of Sir Arthur Gordon, has undoubtedly been to 
bring a far larger area under grain cultivation now 
than was the case at the beginning of the century ; 



Native Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests, 47 

but it is impossible, in the absence of a cadastral 
survey, to give the exact extent. 

The accepted estimate is that there are now 
660,000 acres under rice or paddy, and about 150,000 
under dry grain, Indian com, and other cereals. 
And the striking fact is that, so far from the import 
of grain decreasing as the local production has ex- 
tended, the reverse has been the case. In this, how- 
ever, is seen the influence of the expanding planting 
enterprise : fifty years ago, when coffee-planting was 
just beginning in Ceylon, the total quantity of grain 
required from India was an import of 660,000 
bushels ; now, it is as high as five and six million 
bushels. . The import in 1877, the year of the 
Madras famine, when Ceylon planters had to provide 
for 170,000 fugitives from Southern India, besides 
their usual coolie labour force, amounted to no less 
than 6,800,000 bushels. 

The disposal of the increasing local production 
simultaneously with these imports is explained by 
the rapidly increasing population in the rural dis- 
tricts, and the much larger quantity of food con- 
sumed in a time of prosperity. In the early part of 
the century the average Sinhalese countryman con- 
sumed, probably, only half the quantity of rice 
(supplemented by fruit and vegetables) which he is 
now able to afford. Our calculation is that more 
than three-fifths of the grain consumed is locally 
produced against less than two-fifths imported.* 

Turning from the main staple of native agriculture 



• For further information see paper on ** Food Supply of Ceylon,'* 
by the author, in ** Ferguson's Ceylon Handbook and Directory," and 
also papers on ** Grain Taxation in Ceylon," quoted by Sir William 
Gregory in despatches to Earl Carnarvon. 



48 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

to garden produce, we have to note that, while the 
Dutch monopolies in cinnamon, pepper, &c., were 
probably worked at a loss to the Government, even 
with forced labour at their command, the export of 
the cinnamon spice was insignificant as compared with 
what it has become under the free British system. 
There can be no doubt that Ceylon cinnamon is 
the finest in the world, celebrated from the middle of 
the fourteenth century according to authentic re- 
cords, and one of the few products of importance in- 
digenous to the island. It was known through Arab 
caravans to the Bomans, who paid in Bome the equiv- 
alent of £8 sterling per pound for the fragrant spice. 
Ceylon (called by De Barras the " mother of cinnamon ' ') 
has, therefore, well earned the name '^Cinnamon Isle," 
whatever maybe said of its "spicy breezes," a term 
originally applied by Bishop Heber, in his well-known 
hymn, to Java rather than to Ceylon. The maxi- 
mum export attained by the Dutch was in 1788, 
when 600,000 lb., valued at from 8s. 4d. to 17s. 8d. 
per lb., was sent to India, Persia, and Europe, from 
Ceylon. In the commercial season, 1881-82, Ceylon 
sent into the markets of the world, almost entirely 
through London, as much as 1,600,000 lb. of cinna- 
mon quill bark, and nearly 400,000 lb. of chips, the 
JSinest bark being purchasable at the London sales for 
from 2s. 6d. to 8s. per lb. ; while in season 1885-86 
the export was 1,630,000 quill and 550,000 lb. of 
chips, and the price has fallen almost 50 per cent, 
in six years. The above quantity is yielded by 
an area of about 85,000 acres, cultivated entirely, 
and almost entirely owned, by the people of Ceylon. 

Of far greater importance now to the people, as 
^ell as to the export trade of the island, is its Palm 



Native Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests. 49 

'Cultivation, which has enormously extended since 
the time of the Dutch, especially in the maritime 
districts. European capital has done much in 
turning waste land into coconut plantations; but 
there is, also, no more favourite mode of invest- 
ment for the native mercantile, trading, and indus- 
iirial classes of the people (Sinhalese and Tamils), 
who have greatly increased in wealth during the past 
£fty years, than in gardens and estates of coconuts, 
arecas, palmyras, and other palms and fruit trees. 
Within the Dutch and British periods a great portion 
of the coast-line of Ceylon (on the west, south, and 
east), for a breadth varying from a quarter of a 
mile to several miles, and extending to a length of 
150 miles, has been planted with coconut palms. 
More recently, inland villages, such as the delta of the 
Maha-oya (river), have been planted with coconuts 
as far as thirty miles from the coast. In the Jafi&ia 
peninsula, again, the natives have chiefly planted 
the equally useful palmyra. The palms, together 
with a little rice and a piece of cotton cloth, are 
capable of supplying most of the wants of the 
people. 

It has been commonly remarked that the uses of 
the coconut palm * are as numerous as the days of 
the year. Percival, early in this century, relates that 
a small ship from the Maldive islands arrived at 
Galle which was entirely built, rigged, provisioned, 
and laden with the produce of the coco-palm. f Food, 

* See ** All about the Coconut Palm,'' published by A. M. and J. 
Ferguson, Colombo. 

t The food value of the coconut is not generally understood ; a 
short time ago the crew of a wrecked vessel cast away on a South Sea 
island subsisted for several months on no other food than coconuts 
and broiled fish, and added to their weight in that time. 

6 



50 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

drink, domestic utensils, materials for building and 
thatching, wine, sugar, and oil are amongst the manjr 
gifts to man of these munificent trees. Unlike the 
other trade staples, tea, coffee, cinchona bark, and 
cinnamon, by far the largest proportion of the pro- 
ducts of the coconut palm — nuts, oil, arrack (intoxi- 
eating spirit), leaves for thatch, fences, mats and 
baskets, timber, &c., are locally utilized. 

Arrack (in varying quantities, according to the^ 
demand in the Madras Presidency) is exported, but 
the export is not to be compared with the large local 
consumption, which unfortunately increases with the 
increasing wealth of the people. The British are 
blamed for regulating and protecting the arrack and 
liquor trafl&c, but the consumption was pretty general 
before the British came to Ceylon. It may be a 
question whether taverns have not been too widely 
multiplied, and whether we should not take a leaf out 
of the Dutch policy in Java, where the consumption 
of intoxicating liquors among natives is very rigidly 
restricted. Our calculation is that seven millions of 
rupees are spent by the people of Ceylon on intoxi- 
cants, against not much more than a teuth of this- 
amount devoted to education by the people, missions,, 
and the government. 

A good many millions of coconuts are annually 
exported, but the chief trade is in coir fibre from the 
husk, and still more in the oil expressed from the 
kernel of the nut, used in Europe as a lubricator, for 
soap-making, and dressing cloths, and (partially) for 
candle-making and lighting purposes ; African palm 
oil and petroleum are its great rivals. The average 
value of the products of the coconut-palm exported 
may be taken at about the following figures: oil^ 



Native Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests. 51 

^400,000; coir, £60,000; arrack, £20,000; "koppara''^ 
(the dried kernel sent to India for native food, and 
latterly to France to be expressed), £100,000; "punac'^ 
(the refuse of the oil, or oil-cake, used for cattle food), 
£10,000; nuts, £10,000; miscellaneous products, 
£5,000; making a total of over £600,000; while the 
value of the produce locally consumed must be nearly 
one and a half million sterling per annum, and the 
market value of the area covered with coconuts rather 
over than under twelve millions sterling. The local use 
of coconuts is sure to increase with railway extension 
and the development of the interior of the island* 
There are perhaps thirty millions of coconut palms 
cultivated in Ceylon, covering about 500,000 acres, 
all but about 80,000 acres being owned by natives 
themselves. The annual yield of nuts cannot be 
much under 100 millions. There are nearly 2,000 
native oil-crushers driven by buUocks, apart from 
steam establishments in Colombo, Negombo, &c., 
owned by natives as well as Europeans, while the 
preparation of the fibre affords occupation to a large 
number of the people.* 

After the coconut tree, the palmyra has been 
regarded as the richest plant in the East. Both 
require from eight to twelve years to come into 
bearing, but they are supposed to live from 150 to 
800 years, t By many the palmyra is thought a 
richer tree than the coconut, and it is especially 
adapted to the drier regions of the north and east of 

* For an aoooont of the introduction and spread of coconut culti- 
vation in Ceylon, from the earliest period to the present day, see a 
Paper read before the Boyal Asiatic Society, Ceylon Branch, in 1886, 
by the author, John Ferguson. 

t See William Ferguson's Monograph on ** The Palmyra Palm." 



62 



Ceylon 



1 the JvhUee Year. 



the island. It is estiniated there are eight millionB 
of palm;rae owned by the people in the Jaffna penin- 
sola, the edible prodncts of vhich sappiy one-fonrth 
of the food of 280,000 inhabitants. The Tamil poeta 
describe 800 different purposes to which the palmyra 
can be applied, and their proverb says " it Utob for a 
lac of years after planting, and lasts for a lac of years 
when felled." The timber 
is prized for honse-bnild- 
ing purposes, especially 
for rafters, being hard 
and durable. Besides 
there being a large local 
consumption, as mnch as 
^£10,000 worth is still 
annually exported from 
Ceylou, while of jaggery 
sugar about 20,000 cwt 
- are made from this palm, 
the cultivation of which 
covers 40,000 acres, yield- 
ing perhaps seventy mil- 
lions of nuts annually; 
this nut is much smaller 
than the coconut. 

The kitul or jaggery pahn (Caryota urem), known 
also as the bastard sago, is another very valuable 
tree common in Ceylon, Jaggery sugar and toddy 
wine are prepared from the sap, the best trees yield- 
ing 100 pints of sap in twenty-four boors. Sago is 
manufactured from the pith, and fibre from the leaves 
for fishing-lines and bowstrings, the fibre from the leaf- 
stalks being made into rope for tying wild elephants. 
Of the fibre, from £3,000 to ;£7,000 value is exported 




Native Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests, 58 

annually ; of the jaggery sugar, ^£2,000 worth. The 
quantity used in the country is very great. This 
palm is found round every Eandyan's hut ; indeed it 
has been said by Emerson Tennent that a single tree 
in Ambegamua district afforded the support of a 
Kandyan, his wife, and children. The area covered 
is, perhaps, equal to 80,000 acres. The trunk timber 
is used for rafters, being hard and durable. 

The cultivation of the Areca catechu (which is com- 
pared to '* an arrow shot from heaven " by the Hindu 
poets) was always one of the chief sources of the 
Ceylon trade in ante-British times. In the Portuguese 
era great quantities of the nuts were exported, and 
these formed the chief medium of exchange for the 
proportion of grain which the natives of Ceylon have 
for centuries drawn from Southern India. The Dutch 
esteemed the areca-nut as a very great source of 
revenue, and they made an exclusive trade of it. 
They exported yearly about 85,000 cwt. About the 
same quantity was annually shipped between 1806 
and 1813. Of recent years as many as 160,000 cwt. 
of nuts have been shipped in one year. The export 
is almost entirely to Southern India. An areca-nut 
tree requires five years to come into bearing. It 
grows all over the low country and in the hills up to 
an elevation above sea-level of between 2,000 and 
8,000 feet. Some coffee estate proprietors around 
Kandy in the early days planted areca-nuts along 
their boundaries, thereby forming a capital division 
line, and the cultivation has anew attracted the 
attention of colonists in recent years, especially in the 
Matale and Udagama districts. The chief areca gar« 
dens owned by natives are, however, to be found in 
the Kegala district. The home consumption is very 



&i Ceylon in the Jvhilee Year. 

large, and the area covered by the palm must be 
«qnal to 50,000 acres. The aimnal value of the ex- 
ports of areca-nat prodnee is from £60,000 to £100,000. 
There are nnmerons other palms, more especially 
the munificent talipot {Corypha umhracolifera), which 
flowers once (a grand crown of cream-colonred blossom 
twenty feet high) after sixty or eighty years, and then 




dies, and which is foeely nsed for native hnts, um- 
brellas, books, &c. ; the heart also being, like that of 
the sago palm, good for human food. 

The bread-fruit tree, the jak, orange, and mango, 
aa well as gardens of plantains and pine-apples. 



Native Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests. 55 

melons, guavas, papuas, &c.y might be mentioned 
among products cultivated and of great use to the 
people of Ceylon ; in fact, there is scarcely a native 
land-owner or cultivator in the country who does not 
possess a garden of palms or other fruit trees, besides 
paddy fields. The total area cultivated with palms 
and fruit trees cannot be less than from 700,000 to 
750,000 acres (in addition to 100,000 acres under 
garden vegetables, yams, sweet and ordinary potatoes, 
roots, cassava, &c.) ; and although by far the major 
portion, perhaps four-fifths, of the produce is con- 
sumed by the people, yet the annual value of the 
-export trade in its various forms, from this source, 
approximates to three quarters of a million sterling, 
Against less than £90,000 at the beginning of the 
century. Among food products recently added to the 
list of easily grown fruits and vegetables (by Mr. 
I^ock of the Hakgalla Gardens) are the tree-tomafo, 
chocho, a parsnip, and a small yam, all introduced 
from the West Indies, and already very popular with 
the Sinhalese, especially of the Uva province. 

Besides coconut oil, there is an export of essential 
oils expressed from citronella and lemon-grass, from 
•cinnamon and cinnamon leaf, which, valued at 
£25,000 to £30,000, is of some importance to a 
section of the community. 

Of more importance to the people is their tobacco, 
of which about 25,000 acres are cultivated, the 
^greater part of the crop being consumed locally, 
though as much as 48,000 cwt. of unmanufactured 
leaf, valued at £100,000, are exported to India. 

The natives have always grown a little cotton in 
'Certain districts, and at one time a good deal of cotton 
•cloth was manufactured at Batticaloa, but the in- 



56 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

dustry has almost entirely ceased, being driven out 
by the cheapness of Manchester goods. An industry 
which hasjsprung up of recent years, however, is the col- 
lection of the short-stapled cotton from the pods of the 
silk-cotton tree {Bombax Malabaricum), exported under 
the name of "Kapok" (a Malay term) to Australia 
and Europe, to stuff chairs, mattresses, &c. A small 
quantity of this tree cotton was annually exported 
from Ceylon so far back as the time of the Portuguese. 

Sugar-cane is largely grown in native gardens for 
use as a vegetable, the cane being sold in the bazaars^ 
and the pith eaten as the stalk of a cabbage would 
be. At one time the eastern and southern districts 
of the island were thought to be admirably adapted 
for systematic sugar cultivation, but after plantations- 
on an extensive scale had been opened by experienced 
colonists, and a large amount of capital sunk, it was 
found that, while the cane grew luxuriantly, the moist 
climate and soil did not permit of the sap crystallizing 
or yielding a sufficiency of crystallizable material. 
There is, however, still one plantation and manu- 
factory of sugar and molasses in European hands,, 
near Galle. 

Before leaving the branches of agriculture more 
particularly in native hands, we may refer to the 
large expanse of patana grass and natural pasturage,, 
especially in the Uva and eastern districts, which is 
utilized by the Sinhalese for their cattle, a certain 
number of which supply the meat consumed in the 
Central Province. By far the greater portion, how- 
ever, of the beef and mutton required in the large 
towns of the island is (like rice, flour, potatoes, and 
other food requisites) imported in the shape of cattle 
and sheep, to the value of £80,000, from India. la 



Native Agricultural and Manufacturing Interests, 57 

some years the return has been over £120,000, but 
that was chiefly through the demand for Indian 
bullocks for draught purposes. There is no doubt 
much scope for the people of Ceylon to do more to 
me6t the local demand for such food supplies, 
although the natural pasturage is, as a rule, rather 
poor. In Guinea and Mauritius grass (as also, for 
the high elevations, in the ''prairie grass " of Aus- 
tralia), which grow freely with a little attention, some 
of the best fodder grasses in the world are easily 
cultivated in Ceylon. 



Native Manufactures. 

Of Manufacturing Industries Ceylon has a very poor 
show. The Sinhalese are good carpenters, and supply 
furniture and carved work in abundance ; both they 
and the Tamils make good artizans ; witness the roll of 
workmen in the Government factory, Colombo, and 
the Colombo Ironworks, where ocean-going steamers 
are repaired, as well as a great variety of machinery 
is turned out, such as steam-engines, water-motors, and 
coffee, tea, and oil-preparing machines. The Sinha- 
lese were distinguished as ironworkers in very ancient 
days; they knew nothing about firearms until the 
Portuguese era, and yet they soon excelled European 
gunmakers in the beautifully- worked muskets they 
turned out for their king. They were early workers 
in brass and glass, as their ancient ruins show, and 
they must have known a little about electricity, for it 
is related in the Mahawansa that King Sanghatissa, 
A.D. 234, placed a glass pinnacle on the Buanwelli 
Dagoba, to serve as a protection against lightning. 
In these days the natives have watched with interest 



58 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the introduction of the electric telegraph, telephone, 
and light, and when a suitable electric motor is made 
available, the numerous and splendid streams and 
waterfalls of the hill-country ought to afford ready 
force for utilization. Native cotton spinners and 
weavers were at one time common, but the industry 
is dying out; very little tobacco is manufactured; 
the making of mats, baskets, and coir-rope gives some 
employment. The masons of the country are now 
chiefly Moormen; though the Sinhalese must have 
done much in the building of tanks and other huge 
erections in ancient times. Fishing and mining plum- 
bago and search for precious gems, as well as hunting, 
afford a good deal of employment. Workers in ebony, 
tortoise-shell, and porcupine quills, and in primitive 
pottery, are also numerous among the Sinhalese. 



CHAPTEE VI. 

THE ORIGIN AND RISE OF THE PLANTING INDUSTRY. 

<5offee introduced by Arabs — First systematically cultivated by the 
Dutch in 1740 — ^Extensive development in 1837 — Highest level 
of prosperity reached in 1868-70 — Appearance of Leaf Disease 
in 1869 —Its disastrous effects. 

We now turn to the great planting industry in coffee, 
and the later additions in tea (now the rising and 
most important staple), cacao, the chocolate or cocoa 
plant, not to be confounded with the coconut palm : 
^iinchona, rubber trees, cardamoms, &c. ; to these the 
past rapid development and prosperity of the island 
are mainly due, and on them its future position as a 
leading colony must still chiefly depend. 

The Arabs first introduced coffee into India and 
•Ceylon, and the shrub was grown here before the 
Arrival of the Portuguese or Dutch ; but the prepar- 
ation of a beverage from its berries was totally 
unknown to the Sinhalese, who only used the young 
coffee leaves for their curries, and the delicate 
jasmine-like coffee flowers for ornamenting their 
shrines of Buddha. 

The first attempt at systematic cultivation was 
made by the Dutch in 1740, but, being confined to 



Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 



the low country, it did not succeed, and they seem 
never to have exported more than 1,000 cwt. in a 




jeai ihe Mooimei 
having once dieeoveri 



The Origin and Rise of the Planting Industry. 61 

•cultivation and trade, but when the British took 
Ceylon and up to 1812, the annual export had never 
exceeded 3,000 cwt. So it continued until the master- 
mind of Sir Edward Barnes opened road communi- 
cation between the hill country and the coast, and 
began to consider how the planting industry could be 
extended, and the revenues of the country developed. 
The Governor himself led the way, in opening a 
coffee plantation near Kandy, in 1825, just one year 
after the first systematic coffee estate was formed by 
Mr. George Bird, near Gampola. These examples 
were speedily followed, but still the progress was 
slow, for in 1837, twelve years after, the total export 
of coffee did not exceed 30,000 cwt. 

It is usual to date the rise of the coffee planting 
enterprise from this year, which witnessed a great 
rush of investments, and the introduction of the West 
India system of cultivation by Eobert Boyd Tytler, 
usually regarded as the ''father " of Ceylon planters. 
An immense extension of cultivation took place up 
to 1845, by which time the trade had developed to an 
export of close on 200,000 cwt. Then came a financial 
explosion in Great Britain, which speedily extended 
its destructive influence to Ceylon, and led to a stop- 
page of the supplies required to plant and cultivate 
young plantations. Much land opened was aban- 
doned, and for three years the enterprise was 
paralyzed ; but nevertheless the export continued to 
increase, and by the time Governor Sir Henry Ward 
appeared, in 1855, confidence had been restored, and 
all was ready for the great impetus his energetic ad- 
ministration gave to an enterprise which, in twenty 
years, had come to be regarded as the backbone of 
the agricultural industry of the island, and the main- 



62 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

stay of the revenue. The Sinhalese soon followed 
the example set them by the European planters, and 
BO widely and rapidly developed their ooffee gardens 
throughoTit the hiU-country, that between 1849 and 
1869> horn one-half to one- fourth of the total c[aantity- 
of coffee shipped year by year was "native coffee." 




N COFFEE.* 

The highest level of prosperity was reached iir 
1868, 1869, and 1870, in each of which yeara the 

* For the use of this illQEtration, as also fcr the pUtes o( tbe- 
" CODOQUt Climber," tlie " Talipot Palm," aad the " Coffee Tree," we 
ore indebted to the Bev. S. Laogdon, the author of a oharming 
aceount of the misBionary's home and its ricli Bnrrooudiiiga of animal, 
and Tegetable life in a tropical land. This volnme, " Hj Uisdon 



The Origin and Rise of the Planting Industry, 63 

exports slightly exceeded a million cwt., of a value in 
European markets of not less than four millions 
sterling, against 34,000 cwt., valued at d6120,000, ex- 
ported in 1837 : a marvellous development in thirty 
years of a tropical industry ! 

In 1869 the total extent cultivated on plantations 
(apart from native gardens) was 176,000 acres, and 
the return from the land in full bearing averaged 
over 5 cwt. an acre, a return which should, under 
favourable circumstances, give a profit of from £7 ta 
dBlO an acre, or from twenty to twenty-five per cent, on 
the capital invested. Nothing could be brighter than 
the prospects of the colony and its main enterprise in 
1869 : Sir Hercules Bobinson's administration, then 
in mid-course, was most beneficial ; the railway 
between Colombo and Kandy, two years open, was a 
grand success ; and, with an unfailing supply of 
cheap free labour from Southern India, remarkable 
facilities for transport, and a splendid climate, the- 
stability of the great coffee enterprise seemed to be 
assured. 

Its importance was fully realized through the 
statistics of the actual extent cultivated which were- 
for the first time compiled, in full detail (by the 
author), and although it began to be felt that the 
good land at the most suitable altitude had all beea 
taken up, and most of it brought under cultivation,, 
yet no one doubted the comparative permanency of 
such plantations under a liberal, scientific system of 

Garden,'' and another by the same author, *' Punohi Nona, a story o£^ 
Female Education and Village Life in Ceylon," both give vivid, enter-, 
taining, and truthful pictures of Ceylon life and mission work, and 
they show what good is being done to the people of the country by 
patient teaching. Published by T. Woolmer, 2, Castle Street, City 
Boad, E.C. ; and at 66, Paternoster Bow, E.G. 



64 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

cnliivation. But in this same year there first ap- 
peared an enemy, most insignificant in appearance, 
which in less than a dozen years was fated to bring 
down the export of the great staple to one-fifth of its 
then dimensions, and that notwithstanding a wide 
extension of new caltivation. This enemy was a 
minute fungus on the leaf, new to science, and named 
1}y the greatest fungoid authorities Hemileia vastatrix, 
from its destructive powers, now popularly known as 
" coffee-leaf disease." 

First appearing in one of the youngest districts, at 
a remote comer, it rapidly spread all over the coffee 
zone, being easily distinguished by the appearance of 
bright orange spots on the leaves, which subsequently 
wither and drop off. At first it was treated as a 
matter of little moment by all but the late Dr. 
Thwaites, F.E.S., the Director of the Ceylon Botanic 
Gardens, and for several years it apparently did 
little harm, crops being only slightly affected, and 
any decrease being attributed to seasonal infiuences 
rather than to a minute pest, which, it was supposed, 
only served to remind the planter of the necessity of 
more liberal cultivation. Another cause, moreover, 
served most effectually to blind the eyes of all con- 
cerned to the insidious progress of the pest, and the 
gradual but sure falling-off of crops, namely, a 
sudden and unprecedented rise in the value of coffee 
in Europe and America — a rise equivalent, in a few 
years, to more than fifty per cent. This great access 
of value to his returns more than suflSced to com- 
pensate the Ceylon planter for any diminution of crop. 
It did more : it stimulated a vast extension of culti- 
vation into the largest remaining reserve, known as 
the Wilderness of the Peak, extending from Nuwara 



The Origin and Rise of the Planting Industry. 65 

Eliya through a succession of upland valleys in 
Dimbula, Dikoya, and Maskeliya, to the Adam's Peak 
range, an area of forest covering some 400 square 
miles, having the most delightful climate in the 
world, but until this time (1868-69) regarded as too 
high and wet for coffee. This region had been pre- 
viously utilized as a hunting-ground by an occasional 
party of Europeans or Kandyans, the pilgrims' paths 
to Adam's Peak, winding their way through the 
dense jungle, and intercepted by a succession of large 
unbridged rivers, being the only lines of communica- 
tion. The rush into this El Dorado had begun in the 
time of Sir Hercules Eobinson, who energetically 
aided the development by extending roads and bridg- 
ing rivers, thus utilizing some of the large surpluses 
which the sale of the lands and the increased customs 
and railway revenues afforded him. 

A cycle of favourable — that is, comparatively dry — 
seasons still further contributed to the success of the 
young high districts, so that coffee (which had pre- 
viously been supposed, to find its suitable limit at 
4,000 or 4,500 feet) was planted and cultivated 
profitably up to 5,000 and even 5,500 feet. All 
through Governor Gregory's administration the high 
price of coffee and the active extension of the culti- 
vated area continued, the competition becoming so 
keen that forest-land, which ten or twenty years 
before would not fetch as much as £^ an acre, was 
sold as high as £15, d920, and even d928 an acre. 
Even at this price planters calculated on profitable 
results ; but there can be no doubt that speculation, 
rather than the teachings of experience, guided their 
calculations. 

Between 1869 and 1879 over 400,000 acres of 

6 



66 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

€rown land were sold by the Ceylon Government, 
bringing in more than a million sterling to the 
revenue, and of this 100,000 acres were brought into 
^cultivation with cofifee, at an outlay of not less than 
from two to two and a-half millions sterling, almost 
entirely in the upland districts referred to. 

Meantime the insidious leaf-fungus pest had been 
working deadly mischief. High cultivation, with 
manure of various descriptions, failing to arrest its 
progress, the aid of science was called in, special in- 
vestigations took place, its life-history was written ; 
but the practical result was no more satisfactory to 
the coffee planter than have similar investigations 
proved to the potato cultivator, the wheat farmer 
fighting with rust, or the vine-grower who is baffled 
by the fatal phylloxera. Less deadly than the 
phylloxera, the leaf- fungus had nevertheless so affected 
the Ceylon coffee enterprise that in the ten years 
during which cultivation had extended more than 
fifty per cent., the annual export had fallen to three- 
fourths of the million cwt. The same fungus had 
extended to the coffee districts of India and Java, with 
similar results in devastated crops, but in the greatest 
coffee country of all — Brazil — the impetus to an ex- 
tension of cultivation which the high prices from 
1873 onwards had given, was not checked by the 
presence of this fungoid, or other coffee diseases, and 
from thence soon began to pour into the markets of 
the world such crops as speedily brought prices to 
their old level, reacting disastrously on the Ceylon 
enterprise, which had at the same time to encounter 
the monetary depression caused by the collapse of the 
City of Glasgow Bank and other financial failures in 
Britain. Misfortunes never come singly, and accord- 



The Origin and Rise of the Planting Industry. 67 

ingly a series of wet seasons crowned the evils 
befalling the planters in the young high districts, 
while the older coffee lower down began to be 
neglected, so enfeebled had it become in many places 
under the repeated visits of the fungus. This so dis- 
heartened the coffee planter that he turned his 
attention to new products, more especially cinchona, 
and, later, tea, planted among and in supercession of 
the coffee, as well as in new land. Tea especially 
succeeded so well, as will be fully related further on, 
that coffee over a large area has been entirely taken 
out, and the area cultivated has been reduced from 
the maximum of 275,000 acres in 1878 to not much 
more than 100,000 acres in 1887. The result is that 
in the present season (1886-7) in place of the million 
cwt. exported sixteen years ago, the total shipments 
of coffee from Ceylon will not exceed one-fifth of that 
quantity, and although with a more favourable blos- 
soming time this year it may be increased in the 
succeeding season, yet there is no escape from the 
drawbacks which still beset the coffee planter in Ceylon. 
The leaf-fungus still hovers about, though in a much 
milder, and, as some think, a diseased form; but 
another enemy has appeared in the shape of a coccm 
(called "green bug"), which has done much harm. 
Nevertheless, in certain favoured coffee districts, such 
as the Uva divisions, Bopatalava, Maturatta, Agras 
division of Dimbula, and Middle and Upper Dikoya, 
coffee still looks vigorous, and may continue to repay 
careful cultivation, more especially as prices have 
again improved, and a scarcity of the product is 
anticipated. The mitigations of the disaster — the 
silver lining to the dark cloud which came over the 
prospects of the majority of Ceylon coffee planters — 
will be alluded to later on. 



68 Ceylon in the Jvhilee Year. 

At an early stage in the history of coffee leaf disease 
in Ceylon one cause^ and that perhaps the chief, of 
the visitation had become apparent in the limitation 
of cultivation to one plant, and one only, over hun- 
dreds of square miles of country which had previously 
been covered with the most varied vegetation. Nature 
had revenged herself, just as she had done on Ireland 
when potatoes threatened to become the universal 
crop, as well as on extensive wheat fields elsewhere, 
and on the French vineyards. The hemileia vastatrix 
was described by Dr. Thwaites as peculiar to a jungle 
plant, and finding coffee leaves a suitable food in 
1869 it multiplied and spread indefinitely. It could 
not be said that the fungus thus burst out in Ceylon 
because of coffee being worn out or badly cultivated, 
for it first appeared in a young district upon vigorous 
coffee, and it afterwards attacked old and young, 
vigorous and weak trees, with absolute impartiality* 
The true remedy, then, for the loss occasioned by 
this pest — apart from the wisdom of the old adage 
not to have all one's eggs in one basket — ^lay in the 
introduction of New Products. 



CHAPTEE VII. 



NEW PRODUCTS. 



Tea — Cinchona — Cocoa — ^India-rubber — Cardamoms — ^Liberian 

Coffee, &o. 

Tea cultivation was tried in Ceylon in the time of the 
Dutch, but was not persevered with ; and although 
there is a wild plant {cassia ariculata)^ called the 
Matara tea plant, from which the Sinhalese in the 
south of the island are accustomed to make an 
infusion, yet nothing was done with the true tea 
plant till long after coffee was established. Forty- 
five years ago the Messrs. Worms (cousins of the 
Bothschilds, who did an immense deal in developing 
Ceylon) introduced the China plant, and, planting up 
a field on the Eambode Pass, proved that tea would 
grow well in the island. Mr. Llewellyn about the 
same time introduced the Assam plant into Dolos- 
bagie district, but no commercial result came from 
these ventures. Attention was, however, frequently 
called to this product, and in 1867 a Ceylon planter 
was commissioned to report on the tea-planting 
industry in India. In that same year the attention 
of planters was also first turned to the cinchona 



70 Ceylon in the Jvinlee Year. 

plant, which bad been introduced six years earlier to 
India and Ceylon by Mr. ClementB Markham. The 
Director of the Botanic Garden, Dr. Thwaitea, how- 
ever, found great difficulty in getting any planter to 
care aboat cultivating a " medicine plant," and when 
the great rise in pricee for coffee came, aU thought of 
tea and cinchona was cast to the winds, and the one 
old profitable product, which everybody — planters and 
coolies alike — ^underBtood, was alone planted. 
Very early in his administration Sir William 




Gregory, to his special credit be it said, saw the 
necessity for new products, and he nsed all hia 
personal and official influence to secnre their develop- 
ment, introdncing a new feature into the G-ovemor's 
annual speech to the Legislative Council in special 
notices of the progress of tea, cinchona, cacao, Libe^ 
rian coffee, and rubber cultivation. The influence of 
the principal journal in the colony (the Ceylon 
Obgerver) was cast into the same scale, and piaotioal 



New ProductB. 71 

mformatioii to aid the planter of new products waa 
collected for it from all quarters, more especially 
from the tropical belt of the earth's surface.* 

When Governor Gregory arrived in 1872 only 500 
acres of cinchona had been planted, but before he 
left in 1877 not only had these increased to 6,000 
acres, but the planters bad begun thoroughly to 
appreciate the value of the new product, its suitable- 




ness for the hill-country and climate of Ceylon, and 
the profits to be made from judicious cultivation. 
The great rush, however, took place on the failure of 

* In June, 1881, the moutbl; petiodicol, The Tropical Agricvl- 
turitt, was Btaited by the author from the Obierver presa for the 
special purpose of meeting the reqniremeats of planterg. It cironlateB 
all Tonnd the tropical world, and has received high encominms in 
Britain, United States, and Australia. 

f The original drawing of this illuBtration has been kindlj supplied 
by Heasrs. Howardi and Sons, of Stratford, E. 



72 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

coffee in 1879 and the next three years, so that by 
1883 the area covered by this plant could not be less 
than 60,000 acres. The enormous bark exports which 
followed from Ceylon so lowered the price (involving 
the great blessing of cheap quinine) that it became 
no longer profitable to cut bark in the native South 
American cinchona groves, or to plant further in 
Ceylon, India, or Java. Attention has, therefore, 
since 1884 been directed from cinchona; neverthe- 
less the exports from the existing area continue 
high, and the area still under cinchona, making 
allowance for what is planted throughout the tea and 
coffee plantations, cannot be less than 80,000 acres, 
with several (perhaps forty) million trees above two 
or three years, of all descriptions of cinchona growing 
thereon. The export of bark, which was 11,547 lb, 
in 1872, rose to nearly 14,000,000 lb. the last season 
(1885-6), and it will not be less during 1886-7, while, 
with a fair price, it could be maintained at from eight 
to ten million pounds per annum. Very great mis- 
takes were made at first in cinchona-planting in the 
use of immature seed and by the choice of unsuitable 
species and unsuitable soil, but the Ceylon planters^ 
rapidly qualified themselves to be successful cinchona 
growers, and many still find how much may be done 
to supplement their staples (tea and coffee) through 
this product. 

It has long been the conviction of many who have 
studied the climate and the character of Ceylon soils 
that the country is far more fitted to become a great 
tea producer than ever it was to grow coffee. It is 
now realized, too, that a large proportion of the area 
opened with the latter product — apart from the 
appearance of leaf-fungus altogether — ^would have 



New ProducU. 73 

done much better uoiler tea. Unlike India, there is 
never in the low country, western and sotith-'weetem. 




or ia the central (the hilly) portions of Ceylon, a 
month of. the year vithont rain, the annual &U in 



74 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

this region ranging from 80 to 200 inches, while ibe 
alternate tropical sunshine and moisture form the 
perfection of climate for the leaf-yielding tea-shrub. 
Untimely downpours, which so often wrecked the 
blossoms and the hopes of the coffee-planter, do no 
harm to the leaf crop of the tea-planter. Not only 
so, but the harvesting of tea-leaf is spread over six, 
or even nine, months of the year. If a fresh flush of 
young leaf fails from any cause this month, the 
planter has generally only a few weeks to wait for 
another chance, and, save for the '' pruning " and the 
very wet season in Ceylon, the tea-planter can look 
for some returns nearly all the year round. Very 
different was the case with coffee, the crop of which 
for a whole year was often dependent on the weather 
during a single month ; or even a week's (or a day's) 
untimely rain or drought might destroy the chance of 
a return for a whole year's labour. Even in the 
favoured Uva districts there were only two periods of 
harvesting coffee in the year. Again, while the zone 
suitable for the growth of coffee ranged from 1,500 or 
2,000 to 4,500 or 5,500 feet above sea-level, tea seems 
to flourish equally well (the Assam indigenous kind, or 
good hybrid) at sea-level, and (a hardy hybrid or 
China kind) at 6,000 and even to close on 7,000 feet 
above sea-level. The tea shrub is found to be altogether 
hardier and generally far more suitable to the com» 
paratively poor soil of Ceylon than ever coffee was. 
Nevertheless it took many years to convince Ceylon 
planters of the wisdom of looking to tea; and for 
some years even after it was gone into in earnest, 
much less progress was made than in the case of cin- 
chona. There were good reasons for this in the 
greater cost of tea seed, and the much greater 



yew Products. 




76 Ceylon in the Jvibilee Year. 

tronble entailed in the preparation of the produce for 
the market. Beginning from 1873 with an extent 
planted of 250 acres, in ten years this area increased 
to about 35,000 acres, while in the succeeding year, 

1884, this was doubled, as much being also added in 

1885, and a large extent in 1886, so that before the 
Jubilee Year of Queen Victoria's reign is closed, there 
will not be less than 150,000 acres covered with the 
tea plant in Ceylon. Tea seed is now cheap enough, 
and the manufacture of the leaf- is no longer a mys- 
tery, and Ceylon is on the highway to become a rival 
to the most important of the Indian districts in the 
production of tea. The tea export from Ceylon of 
23 lb. in 1876 has risen to 7,849,886 lb. in 1886, and 
it is expected to go on for some time almost at a 
geometrical rate of progression, so that, when the 
150,000 acres are in bearing, the total export will not 
be less than forty million lb., say in 1890-91. There 
are large reserves of Crown land suitable for tea, for, 
as already said, it is foimd to produce profitable crops 
on land a few hundred feet above sea-level, as well as 
at all altitudes up to the neighbourhood of Nuwara 
Eliya, approximating to 7,000 feet. 

The rapid development of the tea-planting industry 
in Ceylon during the past four or five years consti- 
tutes the most interesting and important fact in the 
recent history of the island. The future of the 
colony depends upon this staple now far more than 
on any other branch of agriculture, and so far the 
promise is that the industry will be a comparatively 
permanent and steadily profitable one. On favoured 
plantations, with comparatively flat land and good 
soil (tea loves a flat as cofifee did a sloping hill-side), 
tea crops have already been gathered in Ceylon for 



New Products. 77 

some years in succession in excess almost of anything 
known in India. With unequalled means of com- 
mimication by railway and first-class roads — Uva 
districts still want their railway — with well-trained,, 
easily-managed, and fairly intelligent labourers in 
the Tamil coolie, with a suitable climate and soil,, 
and, above all, with a planting community of ex- 
ceptional intelligence and energy in pushing a product 
that is once shown to be profitable for cultivation, the 
rapid development -of our tea enterprise from the 
infant of 1876-80 to the giant of 1883-7 may be 
more easily understood. Ceylon teas have been 
received with exceptional favour in the London 
market, and the demand already exceeds the supply. 
The teas are of a high character and fine flavour, 
perfectly pure, which is more than can be said of a 
large proportion of China and Japan teas. It is^ 
therefore expected by competent authorities that as 
the taste for the good teas of Ceylon and India spreads 
— one never enjoys a common adulterated tea after 
getting accustomed to one of good flavour — the China 
teas, to a great extent, may fall out of use. Whether 
this be the case or not, there is no doubt that the 
Ceylon tea-planter can hold his own. The consump- 
tion of his staple is spreading every year, and if the 
English-speaking people of the United States only 
did equal justice to the tea with their brethren else- 
where, the demand would there also exceed the supply. 
Moreover, tea can be delivered more cheaply from 
Ceylon, allowing for quality, than from either India 
or China. As was the case with coffee, the prepara- 
tion of the new staple in Ceylon is in a fair way to 
be brought to perfection. Improved machinery has 
already been invented by local planters and others to 



78 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

«ay6 labour^ counteract the effect of unsuitable 
weather (for withering the leaf, &c.)> or to turn 
out teas with better flavour; and yet the industry 
cannot be said properly to be seven years old in the 
island ! Already its beneficial influence on local 
business, export trade, and revenue is widely felt. 
The Sinhalese, in many districts, are volunteering to 
work for the tea-planters, and native tea-gardens are 
also being planted up on many low-country road-sides. 
This process is bound to go on until there is a wide 
area covered with tea under native auspices. The 
cultivators will probably, as a rule, sell their leaf to 
central factories owned by colonists; but there is 
no reason why, as time runs on, they should not 
manufacture for themselves. The atmosphere of 
planting, business, and even official circles in Ceylon 
just now is highly charged with "tea," and the number 
of Tea Patents (for preparing machines), of Tea pub- 
lications,* Tea Brokers, Tea selling and Tea planting 
companies would greatly astonish a Ceylon coffee 
planter of the " fifties," ** sixties," or even "seventies," 
if he "revisited the glimpses of the moon" in the 
Central or Western province of the island. Tea 
deserves a special chapter in this " Jubilee " book on 
Ceylon, and we could not say less about it. We call 
attention to our several engravings of the tea tree, 
and more especially to the pictures at the end of our 
volume (with letterpress), supplied by the Planters' 
Association of Ceylon in connection with the "Colonial 
and Indian Exhibition of 1886 " (Appendix XI.). 

A minor product as compared with tea, but still a very 

* See the ** Ceylon Tea Planters' Manual." *' Tea and other New 
Products,'* " Planters' Note Book,*' ♦* Tea Tables," and " Tropical 
Agriculturist," published by A. M. and J. Ferguson, Colombo 



New Products. 



promising one in ita own place, is Tbeobroma Cacao 
("foodforRod8")of LinnEenB, producing the " cocoa" 




Euli oont^slng tweat^-foor aaeds In pnlp, which, when pnparedi give the eh 
or commerae. 

and chocolate of commerce. This plant can never 



80 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

be cultivated in Ceylon to the same extent as coffee, 
tea^ or cinchona, for it requires a considerable depth 
of good soil, in a favourable situation, at a medium 
elevation, with complete shelter from wind, and these 
requisites are only to be found in very limited areas 
in this island. Nevertheless, where these conditions 
exist, cacao promises to be a most lasting and profit- 
able cultivation. To the late E. B. Tytler belongs 
the credit of introducing this cultivation in the 
Dumbara valley, and in his hands Ceylon cocoa 
speedily realized the highest price in the London 
market, experienced brokers remarking that there 
must be something in the soil and climate of the 
districts where it is cultivated in Ceylon peculiarly 
suited to cacao. The Matale, Kurunugala, and Uva 
districts also show fine cacao *' walks," and the export 
of " cacao '* has risen from 10 cwt. in 1878 to 18,066 
cwt. in 1886. There are several thousand (14,000) 
acres now planted, which ought to give an export of 
60,000 cwt. (or 6,600,0001b., as counted in the West 
Indies) a few years hence. From experience in the 
West Indies, as well as Ceylon, it is found that up ta 
ten years of age cacao is an uncertain, even delicate, 
plant, but after that it is credited in British Guian& 
with going on for 100 years yielding fairly remune- 
rative crops without much trouble. Ceylon cacao 
planters have already improved on the means of 
preparing the bean for the London market, and 
further improvements are under consideration. It is 
possible that ultimately an area exceeding 80,000 
acres under this plant will enable Ceylon to send 
120,000 to 150,000 cwt. of its product into European 
markets.* 

* See pamphlets on ** Cacao Coltiyation," published by A. M, and 
J.Ferguson, Colombo. 



New ProducU. 



Cardamoms spice (called " grains of paradise ") is 
another minor prodnct, the coitivation of 'which has 







- '^i 


>'^V;':-A 




■',■ ' ■'! 






pi 


^^^^^. 


ibff 


1 


m?^ 


^*r^ 


^ 



benefited a good many Ceylon planters, the export 

rising from 14,0001b. in 1878 to 239,0001b. in 1886 ; 

7 



82 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the latter a quantity sufficient to seriously affect the 
price in the London market. It is^ indeed, a sig- 
nificant fact that in respect of two products, prac- 
tically receiving no attentive aid from our planters 
ten, or, at any rate, fifteen years ago, Ceylon now 
rules the markets of the world. We refer to cinchona 
bark and cardamoms, for the supply of which, as of 
cinnamon, coconut oil, and plumbago, this colony is 
pre-eminent.* 

The Caoutchouc, or India-rubber trees of commerce, - 
from South America and Eastern Africa, are of recent 
introduction, but their cultivation and growth in the 
planting districts of Ceylon have so far not given very 
satisfactory results. The growth of the trees has 
been generally satisfactory, indeed wonderful, equal- 
ling in some cases forty-eight feet in height, and 
forty-five inches in circumference in five years, and 
when more is known about the mode of harvesting 
the rubber the industry may prove very profitable, t 

Among minor new products Liberian coffee was 
introduced from the West African Eepublic of that 
name (in 1875-79 chiefly), in the hope that its large 
size and strong habit would enable it at the low 
elevation in which it grows to resist the leaf-fungus ; 
but this hope has not been realized, and although the 
acreage planted is giving fair crops, there is no . 
attempt to extend this area for the present.! 

Pepper, African palm-oil nut, nutmegs, croton oil 
seeds, and annotto dye plant are among the other 

* Pamphlet on ** Cardamoms Cultivation, (&c./' has been published 
by A. M. and J. Ferguson, Colombo. 

t See " All about Rubber,** second edition, published by A. M. and 
J. Ferguson, Colombo. 

X See ♦* Liberian Coffee," illustrated, published by A. M. and J. 
Ferguson, Colombo. 



New Products. 83 

products to which, by reason of the reverse in coffee, 
planters^ in the bill and low country of Ceylon have 
been turning their attention in isolated cases, with 
resalts more or less satisfactory. In the variety of 
all the indnstries detailed in the foregoing pages it is 




A Bpednun ol nplJ growth In Oeylon (Semt 



felt there is snfBcient gnarantee to warrant the belief 
that the oofFee leaf fangns will prove eventuBlIy, if it 
bas not already proved, a blessing in disguise to the 
island, its colonists, and native people. The latter 



84: Ceyhn in the Jubilee Year, 

suffered with their European brethren, not only 
through the disease affecting their coffee gardens, but 
much more through the absence of employment in so 
many branches which the prosperous coffee enterprise 
opened out to them. Tea plantations are now rapidly 
filling up the blank left by coffee, while many of the 
natives, led by their chiefs and intelligent headmen 
and villagers, are themselves planting new products 
— tea, cinchona, and cacao — and so following the 
example of the European planters. In this way the 
Planting enterprise in all its ramifications in Ceylon 
is fraught with the promise of a greater and more 
reliable prosperity than ever appertained to coffee 
alone in its palmiest days. 



CHAPTEE VIII. 

PRESENT POSITION OF AGRICULTURAL ENTERPRISE, LOCAL 
INDUSTRIES, AND FOREIGN TRADE. 

Exports of last decade — The plumbago trade — Gold and Iron — Native 
industries generally flourishing — Tea especially and Cinchona 
will make up for the deficiency in Coffee. 

To sum up and show at a glance the present position 
of the trade arising from our agricultural enterprise 
and local industry, we here insert a statement of the 
staple exports for the past fourteen commercial sea- 
sons. [See Table on next page.j 

These figures dififer slightly from those already 
quoted for the calendar years ; the commercial season 
closes on 80th September, having been fixed by the 
Colombo merchants many years ago, so as to separate 
as fairly as possible each cofifee crop. 

There are a few headings in this table that we 
have not touched on yet, and the principal one of 
these is plumbago, or graphite. This is the only 
mineral of commercial importance exported from 
Ceylon. The mining industry is entirely in the 
hands of the Sinhalese ; mines of from 100 to 200 
and even 300 ft. depth are worked in a primitive 
fashion, and the finest plumbago in the world for 



Ceylotl in the Jubilee Year. 




Position of Agriculture and Trade. 87 

crucible purposes is obtained. The industry has 
taken a great start of recent years, the average export 
increasing about 50 per cent, within the decade ; the 
value of the trade averages about £350,000 per an- 
num, and this mining industry has sprung up entirely 
within the last forty years. * 

Of other minerals mention may be made of the 
precious stones found and exported in certain quanti- 
ties, the chief being rubies and sapphires and cat's 
eyes. " Pearls " are included in the Customs returns 
with "precious stones," and the total value of all 
recorded in any one year for exports has never 
exceeded £9,000; but the large proportion of both 
pearls and precious stones taken out of the island on 
the persons of natives or others leaving would not be 
entered at all in the Customs returns. 

Gold is freely distributed in the primary rocks of 
Ceylon, but it has not been found in paying quantities. 
Eich iron ore is very abundant, but there is no coal. 

Of other minor exports affording some trade to 
native huntsmen are deer -horns, the trade in which 
indicates a considerable destruction of deer, so that a 
law has been passed to protect them as well as other 
game and elephants. The export of ''hides and 
skins '* is considerable, and might be more important 
were it not for the Sinhalese habits of cutting and 
marking the hides of their cattle. The local industry 
in tanning is very limited, though the materials are 
at hand to extend it considerably. There is also 
much scope for the export of dyeing (as well as 
tanning) substances. The export trade in timber- 
apart from ebony — is considerable, such as satin- 

* See Monograph on *' Plumbago," by A. M. Ferguson, contributed 
to the Boyal Asiatic Society's Journal (Ceylon), in 1885. 



88 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

wood, palmyra, tamarind, &Cm to a total average 
value of £20,000 per annum. 

It will be observed that the branches of trade more 
particularly in the hands of the natives — coconut 
oil, cinnamon, and minor exports — are in a sound, 
flourishing, and progressive condition. The case is 
very different with cofifee, and the significance of the 
figures in our table will be understood when it is 
remembered that between 1865 and 1878 the average 
export of cofifee shipped was equal in value to more 
than double of all the other exports put together. 
But instead of four or five millions of pounds* worth 
of cofifee, we are now reduced to a value of from one 
to one and a quarter million sterling. Now, however, 
come in the new headings in our export table of tea, 
cinchona, and cacao, the latter two of which hence- 
forth divide attention with cofifee, while to tea will 
belong the honour of representing our planting en- 
terprise par excellence. 

As to the future of cofifee, we think that an average 
export of a million pounds' sterling worth (200,000 to 
250,000 cwt.) may still be counted on; and to make 
up the deficiency of three millions we may look to a 
steady export of cinchona bark, worth from three to five 
hundred thousand pounds per annum ; while cacao, 
cardamoms, &c., should make a further considerable 
addition. But the main dependence must be on tea; 
and, considering the rapid way in which this has been 
planted, we see no reason to doubt that the area culti- 
vated will sufifice a few years hence to produce a quan- 
tity, of say thirty to forty million pounds* weight, worth 
a sum approximating to two million pounds sterling. 
Some authorities indeed calculate that there is no 
reason why Ceylon, with 200,000 acres planted with 



Position of AgrieuUure and Trade. 89 

., Bboiild not by and b; supply between sixty and 




seventy million poands of tea of tbe best qualities 
for tbe markets of tbe world. 



CHAPTEE IX. 

WHAT THE PLANTING INDUSTRY HAS DONE FOR THE 

MOTHER-COUNTRY. 

Recent years of depression considered — Planting profits absorbed ik 
THE PAST by Home capitalists — Absence of reserves of local 
wealth — The accumulated profits of past years estimated. 

The recent financial depression and scarcity of 
capital in Ceylon can readily be understood when 
a succession of bad coffee seasons, involving a 
deficiency in the planters' harvests of that product 
equal to many millions of pounds sterling, is taken 
into consideration. There have been periods of de- 
pression before in the history of the Ceylon planting 
enterprise, and these, curiously enough, have been 
noted to come round in cycles of eleven years. Thus, 
in 1845, wild speculation in opening plant ations^ 
followed by a great fall in the price of coffee and a 
collapse of credit, arrested progress for a time; in 
1856-7, a sharp financial shock affected the course of 
prosperity which had set in ; and again, in 1866-7, 
the fortunes of coffee fell to so low an ebb that a 
London capitalist, who visited the island, said the 
most striking picture of woe-begone misery he saw 
was the typical " man who owned a coffee estate."* 



The Benefit to the Mother-Country, 91 

Yet this was followed by good seasons and bounteous- 
coffee harvests. 

The depression which set in during 1879, was,, 
however, the most prolonged and trying. True, 
agriculture nearly all over the world has been suffer- 
ing from a succession of bad harvests, more particu- 
larly in the mother-country; but there are certain 
grave distinctions between the conditions of a tropical 
colony and lands in a temperate zone. In Ceylon a 
generation among European colonists has usually 
been considered not to exceed ten years — not at all 
on account of mortality, for the hills of Ceylon have 
the perfection of a healthy climate, but from the- 
constant changes in the elements of the European 
community — the coming and going which in the past 
made such a distinct change in the broad elements of 
society every ten or certainly every fifteen years. 

Those colonists who made fortunes in coffee in the 
island — only 10 per cent, of the whole body of planters, 
however — did not think of making it their permanent 
home. The capitalist who sent out his money for 
investment got it back as soon as possible. The 
"accumulated profits" made during the time of 
prosperity, which at home form a reserve fund of 
local wealth to enable the sufferer from present 
adversity to benefit by past earnings, were utterly 
wanting in Ceylon. We had no reserve fund of past 
profits to fall back upon, no class of wealthy Euro- 
peans enriched by former times of prosperity living 
amongst us and circulating the liquidated products 
of former industry, when the period of adversity and 
depression arrived. 

Ceylon, in fact, in the best coffee days, used to be- 
a sort of "incubator " to which capitalists sent their 



92 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

eggs to be hatched, and whence they received from 
time to time an abundant brood, leaving sometimes 
but the shells for our local portion. Money was sent 
out to Ceylon to fell its forests and plant them with 
•coffee, and it was returned in the shape of copious 
harvests to the home capitalist, leaving in some cases 
the bare hill-sides from whence these rich harvests 
were drawn. Had the profits from the abundant 
coffee crops in those past days been located here and 
invested in the country and its soil, a fund of local 
wealth might have existed when the lean years came, 
manufactures might now have been flourishing, a 
number of wealthy citizens of European origin might 
have been living in affluence, and we should have 
possessed resources to help us over the time of 
Adversity and depression ! 

The total amount of coffee raised on the planta- 
tions of Ceylon since 1849 is about 19,000,000 cwt., 
and there were produced previously (excluding native 
coffee in both cases) about 1,000,000 cwt. at the least, 
making a grand total of coffee of 20,000,000 cwt. as 
the produce of imported capital. Including interest 
and all items of local cost, we may safely say that 
this coffee has been produced for £2 2s. per cwt., and 
has realized at the least £& net on an average ; it 
has therefore earned a net profit of ^£18,000,000. 
The coffee so produced has been yielded by planta- 
tions of not more than 320,000 acres in the aggre- 
gate, after including a due allowance for lands 
abandoned ; and the average cost of the estates, 
including the purchase of the land, has certainly not 
exceeded £25 per acre, involving a total capital of 
£8,000,000. There should therefore have been a 
sum of £10,000,000 of liquidated profit returned to 



The Benefit to the Mother-Country. 9S- 

the capitalist, besides the refand of his principal, 
and there would still remain the existing plant of say 
200,000 acres of land under cultivation by means of 
the said capital, worth at least i910 per acre, or 
altogether £2,000,000 — ^thus showing a total profit of 
£12,000,000. Looking at some tracts of land which 
have been relegated to weeds and waste — ^tracts 
which for long years poured forth rich harvests for 
their owners — the question will force itself upon us: 
What would now have been the condition of these 
lands if their owners had been settled on them, and 
their families, homesteads, and accumulated profits 
had remained to enrich the island ? 

Possibly the lands now waste would have been 
flourishing farms, whose natural fertility would have 
been maintained, or probably increased, by fostering 
care and scientific treatment, and they might long 
ago have been covered with other tropical products 
wherever the old "King Coffee " had been dethroned 
by age or sickness. 

Where, so far as the planters are concerned, is 
now the fruit of these wasted lands ? Is it not, we 
may ask, absorbed in the wealth of the mother- 
country, swelling its plethora of resources and luxury? 
Hence comes it that, though Ceylon can show many 
outward and visible signs of material wealth since the 
establishment of the planting enterprise, in a greatly- 
increased revenue, great public works, railways, roads,- 
harbour works, tanks, irrigation canals, and public 
buildings, and in a native population greatly raised 
in the scale of civilization and in personal and home 
comforts, yet there is scarcely a wealthy European in 
the island. Biches have been heaped up elsewhere 
— ^that is, in the mother-country — out of Ceylon; 



^4 Ceylon in the Jvbilee Year 

T^hile there are no large local incomes (save among a 
limited number of natives) to meet the era of short 
crops and financial disasters ^hich began in 1879. 

Of course, we are now looking at the Ceylon plant- 
ing enterprise from the colonial point of view. When 
a financial crisis comes, and home capitalists find 
they cannot realize and sell their property through 
the absence of local purchasers, they are apt to speak 
disparagingly of the colony which has done so much 
for their brethren, if not for themselves, in years gone 
by, and which will yet give a good return on capital 
invested in the future. 

Fortunately, within the past generation, a consider- 
able change has taken place in the conditions of 
planting in Ceylon. An unusually large number of 
younger sons, and others with a certain amount of 
<5apital of their own, have settled in the higher and 
healthier districts — possessing in fact one of the finest 
climates in the world — forming comparatively per- 
manent homes, in the midst of their tea as well as 
coffee and cinchona fields. The number of resident 
proprietary and of married planters has largely in- 
<5reased within the past twenty years, notwithstanding 
depression and diflSculty, and with the return of pros- 
perity, further settlement in this way may be antici- 
pated. 

As regards the native cultivation of exportable 
articles^ the profits from six or seven million cwt. of 
native-grown coffee shipped, and from cinnamon, coir, 
coconut oil, plumbago, &c., have of course come back 
and enriched the people in a way which is visible on 
all sides, and is more particularly striking to old 
<jolonists. There is a very large number of wealthy 
native gentlemen enriched by trade and agriculture 



The Benefit to the Mother -Country. 95 

within British times, and nearly all the property in 
ihe large towns, as well as extensive planted areas, 
belong to them ; while, as regards the labouring 
<}lasse8, the artizans and carters, the benefit conferred 
by planting expenditure will be more particularly 
referred to in our next chapter. 



CHAPTEK X. 

WHAT THE PLANTING INDUSTRY HAS DONE FOR CEYLON* 

Population nearly doubled — Revenue quadrupled — Trade expanded 
sixteen to twenty fold — ^Employment afforded to natives — An El 
Dorado for the Indian immigrant — Coffee in the past, as tea in the 
future, the mainstay of the island— The material progress in the 
Planting districts. 

What British capital and the planting enterprise have 
done for Ceylon would require an essay in itself to 
describe adequately. In 1837, when the pioneer 
coffee planters began work, Ceylon was a mere military 
dependency, with a revenue amounting to £372,000^ 
or less than the expenditure, costing the mother- 
country a good round sum every year, the total 
population not exceeding one and a half million, but 
requiring well-nigh 6,000 British and native troops ta 
keep the peace. 

Now we have the population increased to very nearly 
the three millions, with only about 1,000 troops,, 
largely paid for out of a revenue averaging £1,800,000^ 
and a people far better housed, clothed, and fed, 
better educated and cared for in every way. The 
total import and export trade since planting began 
has expanded from half a million sterling in value to 



The Planting Industry and Ceylon. 97 

from eight to ten millions sterling, according to the 

harvests. During the forty-five years referred to some 

thirty to forty millions sterling have been paid away 

in wages earned in connection with plantations to 

Kandyan axemen, Tamil coolies, Sinhalese carpenters, 

domestic servants, and carters. A great proportion 

of this has gone to benefit Southern India, the home 

of the Tamil coolies, of whom close on 200,000 over 

and above the usual labour supply were saved from 

starvation in Ceylon during the Madras famine of 

1877-8. In fact, Ceylon at that time, mainly through 

its planters, contributed nearly as much aid to her 

big neighbour as the total of the '^ Mansion House 

Fund " subscribed in the United Kingdom. 

According to official papers there are sixteen millions 

of people in Southern India whose annual earnings, 

taking grain, &c., at its full value, do not average per 

family of five more than £S 12s., or Is. 6d. per month 

— equal to ^. per head per day. Incredible as this 

may appear, it is true, although with better times 

now perhaps Id. would be a safe rate per caput. No 

wonder that to such a people the planting country of 

Ceylon, when all was prosperous, was an El Dorado, 

for each family could there earn from 9s. to 12«. per 

week, and save from half to three-quarters the amount* 

The immigrant coolie labourers have suffered of late 

years from the short crops and depression like their 

masters, but now, with the revival of profitable 

industry through tea, with medical care provided, 

cheap food, comfortable huts, and vegetable gardens, 

few labouring classes in the world are better off. Nor 

ought we to forget the Tamil Coolie Mission which is 

doing a good work in educating and Christianizing 

many amongst the Tamil coolies, mainly supported a& 

it is by the planters. 

8 



98 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Our calculation is that from each acre of coffee or 
tea land kept in full cultivation in Ceylon five natives 
(men, women, and children) directly or indirectly 
derive their means of subsistence. It is no wonder 
then that, with a population increased in the planting 
era by seventy to eighty per cent., four to five times 
the quantity of cotton cloth is consumed, and ten 
iimes the quantity of food- stuffs imported. As a 
contrast must be mentioned a calculation made re- 
specting the British pioneers of planting — the men who 
worked say from 1837 to 1870 — which showed that only 
one-tenth of these benefited themselves materially by 
coming to Ceylon. Ninety per cent, lost their money, 
health, or even life itself. Latterly the experience is 
not so sad, especially in respect of health. 

The British governors of Ceylon have repeatedly 
acknowledged that the planting enterprise is the 
mainstay of the island. None have more forcibly 
shown this than Governor Sir William Gregory, who, 
in answer to the remark that the general revenue of 
ihe colony was being burdened with charges for 
railway extension and harbour works, benefiting chiefly 
the planting industry, said : " What, I would ask, is 
the basis of the whole prosperity of Ceylon but the 
planting enterprise ? What gave me the surplus 
revenues, by which I was able to make roads and 
bridges all over the island, causeways at Mann^ and 
Jaffna, to make grants for education and to take 
measures to educate the masses — in short, to promote 
the general industry and enterprise of the island 
from Jaffna to Galle — but the results of the capital 
and energy engaged in the cultivation of coffee ? It 
follows, therefore, that, in encouraging the great 
planting enterprise, I shall be furthering the general 



The Planting Industry and Ceyhn, 99 

interests of the colony," Sir William Gregory was 
able to create a new province in Ceylon, entirely 
occupied by the poorest and previously most neglected 
class of natives — namely, tbe North-Central Province 
— with roads, bridges, buildipgs, forest clearings, and 
irrigation works, solely by the surplus revenues 
obtained from the planting enterprise. 

The pioneer planter introduces into regions all but 
unknown to man a host of contractors, who in their 
turn bring in a train of pedlars, tavern-keepers, and 
others, eager to profit by the expenditure about to 
take place. To the contractors succeed the Malabar 
ooolies, the working bees of the colony, who plant 
and cultivate the coffee, and at a subsequent period 
reap the crop. Each of these coolies consumes 
monthly a bushel uf rice, a quantity of salt and other 
condiments, and occasionally cloth, arrack, &c., the 
import, transport, and purchase of which find em- 
ployment for the merchant, the retail dealer, the 
oarrier, and their servants ; and, again, the wants of 
these functionaries raise around them a race of shop- 
keepers, domestics, and others, who, but for the 
success of coffee planting, would have been unable to 
find equally profitable employment. 

Nor are the results bounded by the limits of the 
colony. The import of articles consumed gives em- 
ployment to hundreds of seamen and to thousands of 
tons of shipping that, but for this increased trade, 
would never have been built. The larger demand for 
jice stimulates and cheers the toil of the Indian ryot ; 
the extended use of clothing stimulates the Manchester 
spinners and weavers and all dependent on them ; 
and the increased demand for the implements of 
labour tells on Birmingham and Sheffield^ which also 



100 Ceylon in the Jtibilee Year. 

benefit, as regards the tea indnstryy by the demand 
for varied machinery, for sheet lead, hoop iron, and a. 
host of other requisites. Who shall say where the 
links of the chain terminate, affecting as they do in- 
directly all the great branches of the human family ?" 

Then again, when the estate becomes productive, 
how many of the foregoing agencies are again called, 
into operation. On arrival in Colombo the parchment 
coffee is usually peeled, winnowed, and sized hy 
powerful steam machinery ; cinchona bark is packed, 
by hydraulic machines, while it is often re-bulked and 
re-fired, agencies which provide employment for 
engineers, smiths, stokers, wood-cutters, &c. 

Colombo " stores " in their best days (mainly through 
the drying, picking, and sorting of coffee) gave occu- 
pation to thousands of the industrious poor natives, 
and enabled them to support an expenditure for food^ 
clothing, and other necessaries, the supply of which 
further furnished profitable employment to the shop- 
keeper, merchant, seaman, &c. This is of course 
still true to a large extent. In fact, it is impossible 
to pursue in all their ramifications the benefits 
derived from the cultivation of the fragrant berry 
which has become the staple product of Ceylon. 
Other results, too, there are — moral ones — such as 
must sooner or later arise from the infusion of Anglo- 
Saxon energy and spirit into an Eastern people^ 
from the spread of the English language, and, what is- 
of more importance still, the extension of civilization 
and Christianity. 

The material change in the planting districts and. 
the Central Province of Ceylon within the last fifty 
years has been marvellous. Villages and towns have 
appeared where all was barren waste or thick jungle ; 



The Planting Industry and Ceylon. 101 

roads have been cut in all directions ; and prosperous 
villages have sprung up like magic in " The Wilderness 
of the Peak." Gampola, BaduUa, and Mdtal6; which 
each consisted of a rest-house and a few huts, and 
^awalapitiya, which had no existence at all in 
1837, are now populous towns ; while Panwila, Tel- 
-deniya, Madulkelle, Deltota, HaldummuUa, Lunu- 
^uUa, Fassera, Wellimadde, Balangoda, Batotte, 
Hakw^na, Yatiantotte, &c., are more than villages. 

Some of the planting grant-in-aid roads, carried 
through what was dense forest or waste land, are 
lined for miles with native houses and boutiques, as 
also with native cultivation in gardens or fields. The 
<5hange cannot be better described than in the words 
of the Kev. Spence Hardy, of the Wesleyan Mission, 
who, after spending twenty-two years in Ceylon, 
between 1825 and 1847, returned to England, and re- 
visited the island in 1862. Mr. Hardy was accustomed 
io travel through nearly all the Sinhalese districts. 

Writing in 1864, he says : — " Were some Sinhalese 
ujpyuhami to arise, who had gone down to the grave 
fifty years ago, and from that time remained uncon- 
scious, he would not know his own land or people ; 
and when told where he was he would scarcely believe 
his eyes, and would have some difficulty with his ears; 
for though there would be the old language, even that 
would be mixed with many words that to him would 
be utterly unintelligible. Looking at his own country- 
men, he would say that in his time both the head and 
the feet were uncovered, but that now they, cover 
both ; or perhaps he would think that the youths 
whom he saw with stockings and shoes and caps were 
of some other nation. He would be shocked at the 
heedlessness with which appus and naidas and every- 



102 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

body else roll along in their bullock-bandies ; passing 
even the carriage of the white man whenever they are 
able by dint of tail-pulling or hard blows ; and when 
he saw the horsekeepers riding by the side of their 
masters and sitting on the same seat, there would be 
some expression of strong indignation. He would 
listen in vain for the ho-he-voh of the palanquin- 
bearers and their loud shouts, and would look in vain 
for the tomjohns and doolies, and for the old lascoreens 
with their talipots and formal dress. He would be 
surprised at seeing so many women walking in the 
road and laughing and talking together like men, but 
with no burdens on their heads and nothing in their 
hands, and their clothes not clean enough for them to 
be going to the temple. He would perhaps complain 
of the hard road, as we have heard a native gentle- 
man from Ealpitiya do, and say that soft sand was 
much better. He would wonder where all the tiles 
come from for so many houses, and would think that 
the high-caste families must have multiplied amaz- 
ingly for them to require so many stately mansions ; 
and the porticoes, and the round white pillars, and 
the trees growing in the compound, bearing nothing 
but long thin thorns, or with pale yellow leaves 
instead of green ones, would be objects of great 
attraction. He would fancy that the Moormen must 
have increased at a great rate, as he would take the 
tall chimneys of the coffee stores to be the minarets 
of mosques, until he saw the smoke proceeding from 
them, and then he would be puzzled to know what 
they could be. In the bazaar he would stare at the 
policemen and the potatoes and the loaves of bread, 
and a hundred other things that no bazaar ever saw 
in his day. And the talk about planters and bar- 



Ths Planting Indnistry and Ceylon. 103 

tiacues, cooUe immigration, and the overland and 
penny postage, and bishops ajid agents of Govern- 
ment, and the legislative council and banks, news- 
papers and mail-coaches, would confuse him by the 
strangeness of the terms. He would listen incredu- 
lously when told that there is no r&jak^riya, or forced 
labour, and no fish tax ; and that there are no slaves, 
and that you can cut down a cinnamon tree in your 
own garden without having to pay a heavy fine. 
Eemembering that when Governor North made the 
tour of the island, he was accompanied by 160 
palanquin-bearers, 400 coolies, 2 elephants, and 50 
lascoreens, and that when the adigar iShselapola 
visited Colombo he had with him a retinue of a 
thousand retainers, and several elephants, he would 
think it impossible that the governor could go on ar 
tour of inspection, or a judge on circuit, without 
white olas lining the roadside, and triumphal arches, 
and javelin men, and tomtoms, and a vast array 
of attendants. He would ask, perhaps, what king 
now reigns in Kandy, and whether he had mutilated 
any more of the subjects of Britain. From these 
supposed surprises, we may learn something of the 
changes that have taken place in the island, but we 
cannot tell a tithe of the whole." 

If this was true when the veteran missionary wrote 
in 1862, the picture might well be heightened and. 
intensified by the experiences of 1887, for the progress 
in the second half of our good Queen's reign among 
the people of Ceylon is not less remarkable than it 
was between 1837 and 1862. 

As to the comparative freedom from poverty and 
suffering which distinguishes the lower classes, the 
vast masses of the natives of Ceylon, it must be 



104 



Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 



remembered that they live ae a rale in the most 
genial of climates, where suffering from cold is im- 
possible, and the pangs of hunger are almost nnlmo'wn, 
little more than a few plantains a day being sufficient 
to support life in idleness, if so chosen. Sir Edward 




Creasy, in his " History of England," says : " I have 
seen more human misery in a single winter's day in 
London than I have seen during my nine years' stay 
in Ceylon." 



CHAPTER XI. 

r 

PRESENT PROSPECTS FOR CAPITALISTS IN CEYLON, 

Ceylon still a good field for inyestment — Its freedom from atmos- 
pheric disturbances — Shipping conveniences at the new harbour 
of Colombo — Low freights — Cheap and unrivalled means of 
transport — ^Large tracts available for Tea and other tropical 
culture — Openings for young men with capital — ^High position 
taken by the Ceylon planter — Facilities for personal inspection 
of investments. 

What we have said in the previous chapter will show 
ihe value of the planting enterprise to the settled 
inhabitants and to the government of Ceylon. We 
liave also pointed out the immense advantages gained 
in commerce and profits by the mother-country. Let 
us endeavour to show the British Capitalist, who, 
during the period of deficient coffee crops, grievously 
lost confidence in Ceylon, how many reasons there 
are for him to forbear condemnation, and to look 
atill on this colony as one of the best of British 
•dependencies for the judicious investment of capital. 
It may be unnecessary now, in 1887, to do so, because 
tea has already begun to receive a liberal measure of 
support; but still in many home circles Ceylon is 
decried. 

The situation of Ceylon in the Eastern World is 



106 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

peculiarly favoured in certain respects. The atmos- 
pheric disturbances which periodically agitate the 
Bay of Bengal, and carry, in hurricanes and cyclones, 
destruction to the shipping in the exposed Madras 
roadstead and the devoted Hooghly, seldom or never 
approach the north-eastern shores of this island. If 
Java and the rest of the Eastern Archipelago boast 
of a far richer soil than is to be found in Ceylon, it is 
owing to the volcanic agency which makes itself known 
at frequent intervals by eruptions and earthquakes^ 
the utmost verge of whose waves just touches the- 
eastern coast of the island at Batticaloa and Trin- 
comalee in scarcely perceptible undulations. On the- 
west, again, Ceylon is equally beyond the region of the 
hurricanes which, extending from the Mozambique 
Channel, Tisit so often and so disastrously the coasts 
of Madagascar, Mauritius, and Zanzibar. The wind 
and rain-storms which usher in periodically the 
south-west and north-east monsoons, sometimes in* 
flict slight damage on the coffee and rice crops, but 
there is no comparison between the risks attaching: 
to cultivation in Ceylon and those experienced by 
planters in Java and Mauritius. 

The same absence of risk holds good with reference 
to the formerly open roadstead of Colombo, and the 
island shipping trade, which has for years been nearly 
all centred there. 

Except for an occasional gale from the south-west,, 
there was no special danger to be guarded against, 
and the risks to vessels lying at Colombo were much 
less than to those at Calcutta, Madras, or Bombay* 
But the delay in the transaction of shipping business, 
owing to the prevalence of a heavy surf and a stiff 
breeze during monsoon months, was more than snffi- 



Present Prospects for Capitalists in Ceylon. 107 

cient to justify the very substantial breakwater and 
allied harbour works which, under the direction of Sir 
John Coode and his representative, Mr. Kyle, have 
just been successfully completed at Colombo. The 
capital of Ceylon is now the great central mail and 
commercial steamer port of the East. All the large 
steamers of the P. and 0. Company, the British 
India, Star, Ducal, and most of the Messageries, 
Nord-Deutscber Lloyds, Austro-Hungarian Lloyds, 
Bubattino, the Clan, Glen, City, Ocean, Anchor, 
Holts, and other lines for Europe, India, China, the 
Straits, and Australia, call at Colombo regularly. 
One consequence of this, valuable to the merchant 
and planter, is the regular and cheap freight offered 
to the world's markets. Freights now do not average 
one-half of the rates prevalent some years ago. 

There is no tropical land — indeed there are few 
countries anywhere — so thoroughly served by rail- 
ways and roads, canals and navigable streams, as are 
the principal districts of Ceylon at the present day. 
The means of cheap transport between the interior 
and the coast (a few remote districts only excepted) 
are unequalled in the tropics. Indian tea-planters 
confess that their Ceylon brethren have a great 
advantage over them in this respect, and still more 
so in the abundant supply of good, steady, cheap 
labour, trained by long experience to plantation work. 
A more forcing climate, too, than that of Ceylon does 
not exist under the sun ; while now that the country 
is fully opened, the risks to health are infinitesimal 
compared with those of pioneers in new countries or 
of the tea-planters in the Terai of India. Whatever 
may be said of the inimical effects of bad seasons on 
coffee — ^too much rain at blossoming time — there can 



108 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

be no doubt of tbe advantage of abundance of moisture 
and heat for tea, and it is in respect of the fitness 
of large tracts of undeveloped country for tea pro- 
duction that we would especially ask for the attention 
of British capitalists. 

Indian tea-planters, who have come to see how tea 
is growing in Ceylon, confess that we are bound to 
beat Northern India. Tea, of as good quality as that 
from Assam, can be placed on board ship at Colombo 
for a good deal less per pound than Indian tea on 
board ship at Calcutta. This has been proved, 
although Ceylon planters have not long begun the 
systematic cultivation and preparation of tea. But 
tea (although the principal) is only one among a list 
of valuable tropical products which Ceylon is well 
fitted to grow. 

As a body, Ceylon planters are among the most in- 
telligent, gentlemanly, and hospitable of any colonists 
in British dependencies. The rough work of pioneer- 
ing in the early days before there were district roads, 
villages, supplies, doctors, or other comforts of civili- 
zation, was chiefly done by hard-headed Scots : men 
bivouacked in the trackless jungle with the scantiest 
accommodation under tropical rains lasting for weeks 
together, with rivers swollen to flood-level and im- 
passable, while food supplies often ran short, as none 
could be got across the wide torrents. All these and 
many other similar experiences are of the past in the 
settled planting districts of Ceylon, although there 
are outlying parts where pioneers can still rough it to 
their hearts' content. In the hill-country the pioneers 
about twenty years ago began to be succeeded by 
quite a different class of men. Younger sons with 
a capital, present or prospective, of a few thousand 



Present Prospects for Capitalists in Ceylon. 10^ 

pounds, educated at public schools, and many of them 
University men, found an opening in life on Ceylon 
plantations far more congenial than that of the 
Australian bush or the backwoods of Canada. Of 
course some of these did not succeed as planters, as 
they probably would not succeed at anything in the 
colonies; but for well-inclined young men of the right 
stamp, not afraid of hard work, Ceylon still presents 
an opening as planters of tea, cinchona, cacao, &C.,. 
provided the indispensable capital is available. 

The usual mode, and the safe one, is to send the 
young man fresh from home, through the intro* 
duction of some London or Colombo firm, to study 
his business as a planter, and to learn the colloquial 
Tamil spoken by the coolies, under an experienced 
planter for two or three years. In prosperous time& 
such young assistants were taught and boarded free 
in return for their help, and began to earn a salary 
after a year or so. Now, a fee for board and teaching 
(£50, or at most dGlOO for a year) may be needfuL 
Nowhere in the whole wide world can young men 
learn so thoroughly the mysteries of coffee, tea,, 
cinchona planting, &c., or be so well equipped aa 
tropical agriculturists as in Ceylon. Ceylon planters 
and machinists have taught the rest of the tropics- 
how to grow and prepare coffee properly ; more is 
known in it about the mysteries of cinchona bark 
culture than anywhere else ; the Ceylon tea-planter i& 
likely, ere long, to beat both India and China in the 
race for fine teas. Ceylon cacao beans have already 
sold highest in the London market, just as she sends 
thither the finest cinnamon, coconut-oil, coir, &c. 
It may truly be said that the Press of Ceylon has 
greatly aided the planters in acquiring this pre* 



110 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

eminence. The Ceylon Observer has sent special 
correspondents to report on the tea regions of Assam 
And Darjeeling, on the cinchona gardens of the Nil- 
geries, and of Java ; to West Africa to learn all about 
Xiiberian coffee^ and to South and Central America to 
ascertain the progress of coffee ; while its manuals on 
<3offee, tea, cinchona, cacao, india-rubber, coconut and 
areca palms, cardamoms and cinnamon planting, on 
gold and gems, are known throughout the tropics. 
Of late years, since 1881, a monthly periodical, The 
Tropical Agriculturist, published at the same office, 
has been effectually bringing together all the in- 
formation and experience available in reference to 
-everything that concerns agriculture in tropical and 
sub-tropical regions. This is merely mentioned, en 
jpassant, in part explanation of the high position 
taken by the Ceylon-trained planter, wherever he 
goes. 

After the depression of 1879 many Ceylon planta- 
tion managers and assistant superintendents had to 
seek their fortunes elsewhere ; and, indeed, the 
planting districts of Southern India may be said 
to be offshoot settlements from Ceylon, while in Fiji, 
Northern Australia, the Straits Settlements, Burmah, 
:and North Borneo, there are Ceylon planters now 
pioneering and building up a planting enterprise. 

But with the success of tea, many of our wandering 
colonists have been returning, and there is still ample 
scope for the capitalist and for the young man who 
-can, after he has learned planting, command capital 
in Ceylon. There is a wide extent of forest land 
well suited for tea, and, when sold by Government, it 
may be had for £2 or ^3, sometimes for £1 an acre, 
-crown title freehold. Owing to the depression, pro- 



Present Prospects for Capitalists in Ceylon. Ill 

perty in plantations already formed fell greatly in 
value, and, even now, old coffee estates may be bought 
cheaply, very suitable for tea; but discrimination 
should certainly be exercised. One beneficial result 
of the scarcity of capital has been to secure the 
utmost economy in doing work, and land is now 
opened and cultivated for far less than was the case 
some years ago. 

The convenience afforded by quick passages in large 
steamers via the Suez Canal, and by railways and 
roads in Ceylon, is such that capitalists can now 
inspect their property in Ceylon with as much ease 
and pleasure as they would have in a two months' 
trip to the Highlands of Scotland or to the South of 
Europe ; and ^it is becoming quite a common thing 
for the retired proprietor, or business man to run out 
to Ceylon for the winter months. How different 
the case was twenty years ago I We remember a 
Glasgow capitalist, owning a property worth £100,000 
in Ceylon, coming out to see it, and after getting 
io Nuwara Eliya, within forty miles of the property, 
refusing to go further, so bad were the roads; and 
he, a man of sixty-eight or seventy, returned home 
without ever having seen the plantation, and ulti- 
mately sold his interests to a Limited Company at 
a considerable profit ! 

The carriage of produce from the estates to Colombo, 
from 100 to 200 miles, used often to take as much time 
and cost as much as the freight 15,000 miles round 
the Cape. Prom the Uva districts to Colombo car- 
riage still costs in time and money more than freight 
to London vid the Canal ; but, as a whole, Ceylon is 
magnificently roaded, with an ample supply of cheap 
labour, and a particularly favourable climate. 



112 Ceylon in the Jvb'ilee Year. 

Finally, let the capitalist know that obnozions lawr 
connected ^th the Boman-Datch syetem are to be- 




leformed. CodcB are h 
laws have either been, o 



ling framed, and antiqaated' 

' ate likely soon to be, super- 



CHAPTEE XII. 

ATTRACTIONS FOR THE TRAVELLER AND VISITOR. 

The voyage a pleasure trip — Historical monuments, vegetation, &o, — 
Variety of climate — Colombo, the capital — Kandy, the Highland 
capital — ^Nuw^ra Eliya, the sanitarium — The Horton Plains — 
Adam's Feak^Uva and its long-delayed railway — ^Ancient cities 
of Anuradhapura and Folonnaruwa — Occasional Pearl fisheries — 
Probable expense of a visit to Ceylon — The alleged inconveniences 
of tropical life. 

To the traveller and visitor Ceylon offers more attrac- 
tions even than to the capitalist and would-be planter. 
It is a joke with disappointed men that the stranger 
can see on the hills of Ceylon the graves of more 
British sovereigns than of Kandyan kings ! Bnt the 
latter are not wanting, and no dependency of Britain 
— India not excepted — presents more attractions than 
Ceylon to the intelligent traveller, to the botanist, the 
antiquarian or the man of science, the orientalist, or 
even to the politician and the sociologist. Visitors 
from America and North India have said that Ceylon, 
for natural beauty, historical and social interest, is 
the ^' show-place of the universe," and that, as such, 
it might well, in these days of travelling sight-seers, be 
leased by either a Bamum or Cook ! The voyage of 
twenty-four to twenty-eight days from London to 
Colombo (of eighteen to twenty-one from Brindisi or 

9 



114 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Marseilles) on a first-class steamer of any of half a 
dozen lines competing at from £40 to d965 for the 
single, or less than double for the return passage, is, 
at the proper season of the year — September to March 
or April — a pleasure trip of the most enjoyable and 
instructive kind. The calling by some steamers at 
Gibraltar, Malta, Port Said, Suez, and Aden affords 
instruction and pleasure of a high order ; while the 
beauty of Ceylon vegetation and scenery, the interest 
attaching to her people, towns, and ancient cities and 
monuments, amply reward even the worst sea- 
traveller for the unpleasantness of a voyage. Tennent 
well says that Ceylon, from whatever direction it may 
be approached, unfolds a scene of loveliness and 
grandeur unsurpassed, if it be rivalled, by any land 
in the universe. Its names — " Lankfi, the resplend- 
ent," of the Brahmins ; the " pearl-drop on the brow 
of Ind," of the Buddhists; "the island of jewels*' of 
the Chinese ; " the land of the hyacinth and ruby " of 
the Greeks ; and " the home of Adam and Eve after 
losing Paradise,'' according to the Mohammedans — 
AS Arabi and his fellow exiles said soon after their 
arrival — will show the high esteem in which it has 
been held both in the East and the West. 

As for its history, as already mentioned, no region 
between Chaldea and China can tell so much of its 
past deeds as Ceylon, while the ruins of its ancient 
capitals in palaces, temples, dagobas, and tanks are 
only second to those of Egypt. These ruins are all 
now rendered accessible in a few days' trip by railway 
and carriage from Colombo, without risk or incon- 
venience, and at very little expense to the traveller.* 

* See Burrows* *♦ Guide to the Buried Cities of Ceylon," published 
by A. M. and J. Ferguson. 



Attractions for the Traveller and Visitor, 115 

As to vegetation and natural history generally, 
Ceylon is one huge tropical garden, presenting objects 
of intense interest to the botanist and zoologist, from 
the coral reef and pearl oyster banks around its 
coasts, and the palms and creepers bending down to 
meet ''the leaguelong rollers thundering on its 
shores," to the grassy pathways running up to hills 
clothed to their summit with the most varied forest 
trees, or to the plateaux of Nuwara Eliya and the 
surrounding plains — "the Elysium of Ceylon" — 
where, at an elevation of over 6,000 feet, in grass, 
and flowers, and trees, a bit of 

" Europe amid Asia smiles." 

There, in snug cottages, wood fires and blankets are 
often required to keep away the cold. In one day the 
visitor can pass from Colombo with its average tem- 
perature of 81° to the sanatarium, with its wintry 
comforts, and temperature falling to freezing-point 
occasionally, but averaging 57°. During March, 
April, and May — " the season " at the sanatarium — 
the weather is very equable, coniparatively dry, and 
delightful. September and part of August and 
October, are very pleasant, and often January and 
February, as well as December sometimes, though 
thin ice on the water, and hoar frost on the herbage, 
are then not uncommon. The very wet months are 
June, July, and December. Sir Samuel Baker lived 
eight years continuously at Nuwara Eliya, and speaks 
very highly of its healthfulness.* Indian civilians 
and other residents declare that Nuwara Eliya is 

♦ See Sir Samuel Baker's " Eight Years " and "Rifle and Hound 
in Cejlon.'* 



116 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

more pleasantly accessible to them than most of their 
own sanitaria, the short sea-voyage from Calcutta or 
Bombay being an additional benej&t to many who 
come from the hot dry plains of Central India. For 
invalids, the marine boarding-house at Mount 
Lavinia, as well as the Colombo marine hotels, are* 
very safe and suitable places of resort. 

The perfection of climate, in an average of 65° all 
the year round, is found at 5,000 feet, among the 
bungalows of Dimbula, Dikoya, Maskeliya, or of 
Uva, with its dryer and at times more pleasant 
climate. It is no wonder then that parents and 
others, with their sons, daughters, or other relatives 
settled in Ceylon, should have begun to visit it in 
order to escape the trying winter and spring months, 
in England. Not a few who used to winter in Egypt 
find it nearly as convenient and more interesting ta 
come on to Ceylon. The late Mr. C. A. Cameron and 
his wife, Mrs. Julia Cameron (the well-known artist 
and friend of Tennyson), even when in advanced 
years (approaching to or over fourscore), made the 
voyage across several times to visit and stay for con- 
siderable periods with their sons settled in the island. 
Of late years winter visitors from Europe and hot- 
weather refugees from India have been numerous, 
apart from '* globe-trotters " calling in. 

Colombo, the capital, a city of close on 120,000* 
inhabitants, with its fine artificial harbour (projected 
by Sir Hercules Eobinson), has much to interest the- 
visitor in its beautiful drives over the smoothest of 
roads through the *' Cinnamon Gardens ; " its lake^ 
and the Kelani river, with Sir Edward Barnes's 
bridge of boats; its public museum, erected by Sir 
William Gregory, and containing objects of interest 



Attractions for the Traveller and Visitor. 117 

from all parts of the island ; the old Dutch church, 
containing the tomhs and monuments of Dutch 
governors ; the bungalows and gardens of the Euro- 
peans ; still more unique are the crowded native parts 
of the town, teeming with every variety of oriental race 
And costume — the effeminate light brown Sinhalese, 
ihe men as well as women wearing their hair tied 
behind in knots (the former patronizing combs, the 
latter elaborate hairpins), the darker and more manly 
Tamils, Hindus of every caste and dress, Moormen 
or Arab descendants, Afghan traders, Malay police- 
men, a few Parsees and Chinese, Kafl&r descendants,* 
besides the Eurasians of Dutch, or Portuguese, or 
English and native descent. 

Colombo has two j&rst-class, besides minor hotels, 
and the stranger is soon surrounded by native pedlars, 
•especially jewellers with their supply of gems, from 
rare cat's-eyes, rubies, sapphires, and pearls, to j&rst- 
class Birmingham imitations. 

The scene to the new-comer is bewilderingly inte- 
resting, visions of the " Arabian Nights " are conjured 
up, for, as Miss Jewsbury sang after her visit some 
forty years ago : — 

** Ceylon I Ceylon I 'tis nought to me 

How thou wert known or named of old, 
As Ophir, or Taproban^, 
By Hebrew king, or Grecian bold : — 

To me thy spicy-wooded vales, 
Thy dusky sons, and jewels bright. 

But image forth the far-famed tales — 
But seem a new Arabian night. 



* Kaffirs first arrived in Ceylon as a company of soldiers sent from 
Ooa to help the Portuguese against the Sinhalese in 1636-40. 



118 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

And when engirdled figures crave 

Heed to thy bosom's glittering store — 

I see Aladdin in his cave ; 
I follow Sinbad on the shore.'* 

Although the mean temperature of Colombo is 
nearly as high as that of any station in the world as 
yet recorded, yet the climate is one of the healthiest 
and safest for Europeans, because of the slight range 
between night and day, and between the so-called 
"seasons," of which, however, nothing is known 
there, it being one perpetual summer varied only by 
the heavy rains of the monsoon months, May, June, 
October, and November. But in the wettest months 
it rarely happens that it rains continuously even for 
two whole days and nights ; as a rule, it clears up for 
some hours each day. 

Waterworks have been constructed, at a heavy cost, 
to convey water from mountain streams, distant 
thirty miles, to serve Colombo, some parts of which 
are badly off for a good supply. When the works 
and distribution over the city are completed — the city 
reservoir, costing B600,000, has been b, fiasco, cracking 
again and again in 1886-7, through a bad founda- 
tion — and when the drainage is thus improved, 
Colombo will more than ever be entitled to its repu- 
tation of being one of the healthiest (as well as most 
beautiful) cities in the tropics, or indeed in the world. 
A convenient system of tramways is also being pro- 
jected, while at present, besides the railway through 
one side of the town, there are numerous conveyances 
of different descriptions for hire, and many "jini- 
rickshaws '* (man-power carriages), peculiar to Japan 
and the Far East.* 

* ** Jinirickshaws," which have become very popular in Ceylon 
towns, in Colombo, Eandy, and Nnwara Elija especially, were first 



Attractions for the Traveller and Visitor, 119 

There are several places of interest in the neigh- 
bourhood of Colombo that are well worth a visit. 

A seaside railway line runs for twenty-seven miles 
as far as Kalutara (the Eichmond of Ceylon), the 
border inland being one continuous avenue of coconut 
trees. The enjoyment of the scene to a lover of 
natural beauty is indescribable : the cool shade of the 
palm groves, the fresh verdure of the grass, the 
bright tints of the flowering trees, with occasional 
glimpses through openings in the dense wood of the 
mountains of the interior, the purple zone of hills 
above which the sacred mountain of Adam's Peak is 
sometimes seen, all combine to form a landscape 
which in novelty and beauty is unsurpassed : 

** So fair a scene, so green a sod, 
Our English fairies never trod." 

As Miss Martineau wrote, fifty years ago, in her 
political romance, "Cinnamon and Pearls" — **The 
Blue Lake of Colombo, whether gleaming in the sun- 
rise or darkening in the storms of the monsoon, never 
loses its charm. The mountain range in the distance 
is an object for the eye to rest lovingly upon, whether 
clearly outlined against the glowing sky, or dressed 
in soft clouds, from which Adam's Peak alone stands 
aloft, like a dark island in the waters above the 
firmament." 

The mildness of the climate of Colombo, the 
murmur of cricket and insect life at night, and the bril- 
liancy of the moonlight, strike the stranger, although 
the closeness of the atmosphere then is sometimes 

introduced in 1884, on the suggestion of the author, after a visit ta 
China and Japan, where he thought the "rickshaws'* peculiarly 
fitted for Ck>lombo roads. 



120 



Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 



felt to be oppressive, and the attentioa of mosqTutoes 
at certain seasons is far from pleaeant. Bat the low 
country can easily be exchanged for the hills. In 
four hours one passes from Colombo by a splendid 




railway rnnning through intereBting conntry, snr- 
monnting an incline which is one of the greatest rail- 
way ascents in the (at least, tropical) ■world, 1,600 
feet above sea-level, to the last capital of the native 



Attractions for the Traveller and Visitor. 121 

kings of the island — Kandy — a town of 22,000 people. 
Kandy is uniquely beautiful : the most charming 
little town in the world, travellers usually describe it. 
It is situated in a valley surrounded by hills, and 
boasts an artificial lake, Buddhist and Hindu temples, 
including the Maligawa, the most sacred Buddhist 
temple in the world ; this contains the so-called relic of 
Buddha's tooth, to which the kings and priests of Bur- 
mahy Siam, and Cambodia send occasional offerings, 
and which is had in reverence in portions of India, 
Thibet, and even China and Japan. " The Pavilion,'* 
one of the three ofl&cial residences of the governor in 
ihe island, with its gardens and grounds, surmounted 
by the public " Lady Horton's Walk " on a hill-range 
overlooking the Dumbara valley, will attract atten- 
tion. The view of the town from any of the hill- 
sides surrounding it is surpassingly interesting.* 

The Botanical gardens at PerMeniya, three miles 
from Kandy, "beautiful for situation exceedingly," 
as well as full of interest in the vegetation, are well 
v^orth a visit, t 

The group of palms at the entrance has always 
been an object of admiration to strangers, and it 
shows how well adapted Ceylon is to be the home 
of this family. We reprint an engraving of this 
^roup, and append here th( 



NAMES OF PALMS, Ac, IN GROUP. 
(See Engraving J page 122.) 

1. Goiypha nmbracalifera (Talipot)— highest plant, in the centre. 

2. Phytelephas macrooarpa (Ivory-nut Palm) — in front of foregoing, 

and behind native servant. 



* 5fee Burrows' "Guide to Kandy, &c.," published by A. M. and 
J. Ferguson. 

t An interesting little guide-book and list of plants, (&c.,have been 
prepared by the director, Dr. Trimer, and are available. 



li'2 Ceylon in the Jubilee Yet 




Attractions for the Traveller and Visitor. 12S 

3. Cycas, circinalis (called erroneously " Sago Palm ") — Immediately 

to the left of preceding, in front. 

4. Areca Catechu—directly behind the Cyoas, and with its head of 

leaves amongst those of the Talipot. 

5. Yucca gloriosa— a duster of shoots of this in front ; to the left of 

the Cycas. 

6. Cocos nucifera (Cocoa-nut) — immediately behind the Tucca. 

7. Onoosperma fasciculata (*' Eattoo Eittool*') — ^behind, between the 

Talipot and Cocoa-nut. 

8. Aorocomia sclerocarpa — ^behind the Tucca, and with its trunk a 

little to the left of that of the Cocoa-nut. 

9. Livistona sp. — at the extreme left of the group. 

10. Livistona Chinensis (" Mauritius Palm '*) — ^behind and directly to 

the right of the Talipot. 

11. Livistona sp. — immediately to the right of the coolie, in front. 

12. Oreodoxa regia (Cabbage Palm) — directly behind No. 11 ; trunk 

large, smooth, bulged above the middle. 

13. Sabal Palmetto (** Palmetto'' of the Southern States of America) 

— to the right of the group, in front. 

14. Eloesis Guineensis ('* Palm Oil Palm '' of Africa) — with numerous 

long spreading leaves ; behind and overtopping No. 13, and to 
the extreme right of the group. 



Between Colombo and Kandy extensive paddy or 
rice cultivation can be seen in the low country ; while 
higher up the Kandyans' terraced rice-fields and 
fields of tea, with some Liberian cofifee and chocolate 
trees, may be noted. 

From Kandy a visit to the Dumbara valley, five or 
six miles by road, or to Matale, twenty miles by rail- 
way, will show some of the finest cacao (chocolate) 
plantations; while southward, the railway journey to 
Gampola and Nawalapitiya, for seventeen miles, and 
then on for forty-two miles, rising by successive 
inclines nearly 4,000 feet, to Nanu-oya, near Nuwara 
Eliya, will carry the visitor through long stretches of 
tea and cinchona, with some coffee, plantations, 
amidst enchanting mountain scenery, with rivers, 
forests, waterfalls, and gorges that nothing can 



124 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 





a^M|M 


^ 


Pfjfl 




JbL^j m '^^^HHH^^I 


j„i 






M^H 


ill 


1 -flifn^^ ~^^M^m[^^m 


W> 





!i 



Attractions for the Traveller and Visitor. 125 

Borpass. Altogether, the railway ride from Colombo 
to Nanu-oya for 180 miles, rising from Bea-level to 
6,800 feet {over one mile np in the air), is one of the 
moat varied and interestine in the world.* The 




journey is made by a first clasB broad gauge railway^ 

* See " Guide to Cejlon Railways and BaUnaf EitenaianB, with 
Kotioe ol tbe Sanitarlam," compiled end pnbliBhed by A. M. and J. 
Feigofon. 



126 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

ivith a refreshment car attached, for two-thirds of the 
way, in seven to eight hours, without any change of 
iirain or carriage. 

Nanu-oya is only about four miles from Nuwara 
Eliya, the sanatarium, by a fine road, on which 
<5oaches or other conveyances run for the convenience 
of railway travellers. There is good hotel and board- 
ing-house accommodation ; the " Gregory Lake," due 
io Sir William Gregory, is a fine feature ; plantations 
of tea and cinchona, and the finely situated and ad- 
mirably kept Hakgalla experimental gardens, are in 
ihe neighbourhood. The summit of the highest 
moujitain in Ceylon, Pidurutalagala, 8,296 feet, or 
•2,000 feet above the Plains, can be easily attained in 
a walk before breakfast ; while a trip to the top of 
the far more interesting Adam's Peak (sacred alike to 
Buddhists, Hindus, Mohammedans, and even Boman 
Catholics) can be readily arranged, the railway and a 
good road running for forty miles to a point on the 
mountain breast about 3,000 feet from the summit, 
which is 7,353 feet high. The climb up Adam's Peak 
is a stiff one, particularly the last portion, where 
steps are cut out, and even chains fixed in the rock, 
to prevent the climber from slipping or being blown 
down the side of the precipice in stormy seasons. The 
view from the top in clear weather is ample reward 
for all trouble, and the projection of the shadow 
across the low country to the sea as the sun rises is 
a sight, once seen, never to be forgotten.* 

From Nuwara Eliya a day's ride suffices to reach 
the Horton Plains, 1,000 feet higher ; and there, as 
well as between these two points, is a large extent of 

♦ See Appendix X. for paper on **The Shadow of the Peak," by 
JHon. Ralph Abercromby. 



Attractions for the Traveller and Visitor. 127 

upland in a delightful climate, well suited for compara- 
tive settlement by Europeans. At any rate their chil- 
dren could be kept here in rude health until twelve to 
fourteen years of age ; and the soil is well fitted for 
small farms and vegetable gardens, as well as for 
growing cinchona and the finer qualities of tea. As 
a sanatarium for British troops, this site is unequalled, 
both for climate and accessibility. 

Already the surrounding districts, served by road 
and railway, and having villages, stores, churches, 
clergymen, and doctors, are beginning to be regarded 
as the comparatively permanent homes of many of 
the planters. Nuwara Eliya and the Horton Plains 
border on the Uva Principality, with its comparatively 
dry upland climate, where so deliciously pleasant and 
health-giving is the air that to breathe it has been 
compared to a draught of the pure juice of the grape. 
A waterfall in Eastern Haputale, one of the divisions 
of Uva, is the highest in Ceylon (page 131), while the 
Ella Pass and the view of the low country and sea coast 
from the hill range is very striking.* As we write, the 

* Perhaps there is not a scene in the world which combines 
sublimity and beauty in a more extraordinary degree than that which 
is presented at the Pass of Ella, where, through an opening in the 
chain of mountains, the road from Badulla descends rapidly to the 
lowlands, over which it is carried for upwards of seventy miles, to 
Hambantotte, on the south coast of the island. The ride to Ella 
passes for ten or twelve miles along the base of hills thickly wooded, 
except in those spots where the forest has been cleared for planting 
coffee. The view is therefore obstructed, and at one point appears to 
terminate in an impassable glen ; but on reaching this the traveller is 
startled on discovering a ravine through which a torrent has forced its 
way, disclosing a passage to the plains below, over which, for more 
than sixty miles, the prospect extends, unbroken by a single eminence, 
till, far in the distance, the eye discerns a line of light, which marks 
where the sunbeams are flashing on the waters of the Indian Ocean. 
— Emerson Tennent. 



128 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

whole colony is eagerly awaiting the sanction of the 
Secretary of State to another section of Eailway 
extension from Nanu-oya for 25J miles to Haputale- 
This line will rise to nearly 6,300 feet, summit level, 
and then descend to 4,400 feet near the Haputale Pass. 
The journey over the dividing range and the burst into 
the grand Uva amphitheatre of mountain range, em- 
bracing rolling pastures (grassy plains), rich, cultivated 
valleys with sparkling streams and glistening irriga- 
tion channels, will be full of an interest of its own to 
travellers. The Uva province too, perhaps more than 
any other in Ceylon, will offer attractions and oppor- 
tunities to the planting settler and capitalist for 
investment, its soil and climate being generally con- 
sidered the best in the island for the staple products 
of the colonist as well as for the fruits and vegetables 
cultivated by the natives. In the Park country 
division of the province, there is also rich pasturage 
for feeding cattle, while opportunities for sport, from 
snipe to elephants, are presented on all sides. As 
already stated, civil and military ofi&cers, merchants 
and others, from India, are now beginning to regard 
Ceylon, with its seaside boarding-establishments, and 
its comfortable accommodation at Nuwara Eliya 
sanatarium, as more desirable than Indian hill- 
stations during the hot season. 

From Kandy the trip to the ancient capitals of 
Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa, from ninety to sixty 
miles to the north and east, can easily be arranged 
for the visitor ; and from amid the ruins of Anuradha- 
pura (2,000 years old) one can despatch a telegram to 
friends at home in England, or post a budget of news.* 

* With the permission of Mr. Bichard Bentley, the publisher, extracts 
from Major Forbes*s "Eleven Years in Ceylon" (published in 1840), 



AtlractioHB for the Traveller and Vititor. 12!> 



For sportsnien there is elephant shooting in the far 
fouth in the Hambantota district, elk hunting round 




Kawara Eliya, or wild buffalo, bear, boar, or wild 

beariiig on the ruinB ol AnurMbapnra and the Buddhist religion, ar^ 
given aa Appendix n., bnt for the best modem deacription we retec to 
" !£he Bniied Cities of Cejbn,".b; Mr. Buixowa, C.C.5., published bj 
A. M. A J. Fetgueoa, Colombo. 

10 



130 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

hogy and cheetah hunting in the forests of the north 
and east.^ 

In 1888-9, and probably in further successive years, 
the opportunity may be afforded of being present at a 
pearl-oyster fishery off the north-west coast, for which 
Ceylon has been famous from time immemorial. 
The primitive mode of diving for and gathering the 
oysters by a particular caste of native divers, their 
sale by Government auction, and the business in 
pearls with thousands of dealers and their followers, 
who collect from all parts of India in the hope of a 
good fishery taking place, — all this is full of novelty, t 

The cost of living in Ceylon at hotels ranges from 
10s. per day upwards, board and comfortable accom- 
modation by the month being available at from £1 to 
£10 per month for each adult. A lady and gentleman 
leaving England on the 15th of November, and re- 
turning by the 15th of May, spending four clear months 
in a comfortably-furnished bungalow in the hill-coun- 
try of Ceylon, could do so for a total cost of from 
£250 to iiSOO, including cost of trips to the points of 
interest in the island; the greater portion of this 
amount being for passage-money to and fro, which 
now ranges from ^£70 to £100 for return tickets. 
With further competition there can be no doubt, as 
the steamer's margin of profit allows of a considerable 

* Elephant kraals — a system of captaring elephants peculiar to 
Ceylon — are now of rare occurrence, being organized only on 
special occasions. A description by the author of the kraal arranged 
for the entertainment of the Princes Albert Victor and George of 
Wales on their visit to the colony, which, though not very successful 
in its primary object, was characterized by some stirring incidents, 
will be found in^Appendix I. Herds of as many as 200 elephants and 
100 wild hogs have been seen at one time in Ceylon. 

+ For particulars of the '• Pearl Fisheries " see Ferguson's ** Ceylon 
Handbook and Directory," for successive years. 



Attractions for the Traveller and Visitor. 181 

reduction, that the day is not far distant when £36 
should secure a first-class passage between Ceylon and 




3 IHI Drru.i;iuoYA, i 

PBET HiaB. 

Fram a Photograph by the late H. F. Qrlgian. 

.England, and £50 a return ticket extending over six 
months. Before the Snez Canal opened £100 vas the 
^iugle rate for the overland route. 



132 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

It may be averred that little has been said about the 
drawbacks to life in, or even to a visit to, Ceylon. The 
tropical heat in the low country must be endured ; but, 
if found trying, a single day's journey will carry the 
visitor to a cool region. As to the detestable leeches 
described by Tennent as infesting every country path- 
way, and the poisonous snakes, the visitor may be 
months, or even years, in Ceylon without ever seeing 
the one or the other, being no more troubled by them 
than by the enormous crocodiles in the river or the 
voracious sharks round the coast. Bepulsive insects, 
such as centipedes, scorpions, and large spiders, are 
also most rare in any well-ordered bungalow ; while 
mosquitoes are only occasionally troublesome, and that 
chiefly in tlie low country. The brilliancy of the light,, 
under a full moon, in the tropics is generally a great 
treat to strangers ; so also are the stars and constella- 
tions of the Southern Hemisphere, including the bright 
fixed star Carropus and the interesting as well as 
brilliant constellation of the Southern Cross. The 
hum of insect life, as soon as day closes, in the moist, 
warm, low country at once arrests the ears of new 
comers, though local residents become so accustomed 
to it as not to hear it until their attention is specially 
directed. The monotony of perpetual summer, and 
of days and nights of about the same length all the 
year round, affords one point of strong contrast to 
England, but is pleasing, rather than otherwise, to the 
visitor. 



CHAPTEE XIII. 

THE RBTENUB AND EXPENDITURE OF CEYLON. 

Chief sources of Bevenne : — Grain and Customs dues, sales of Crown 

Land, and Bailway profits. 

Until 1828 there was an annual excess of expenditure 
over revenue in Ceylon ; but between 1829 and 1836 
the balance was on the right side, owing chiefly to a 
series of successful pearl fisheries. From 1837 to 
1842, and again from 1846 to 1849, expenditure once 
more exceeded revenue ; but from that time there was 
a surplus, and the amount of revenue quadrupled 
within twenty-five years, owing to the rapid develop- 
ment of the planting enterprise — the sale of Crown 
forest lands largely contributing — until in 1877 it 
attained a maximum of ^£1,702,619. Since then, 
owing to the falling off of the crops, the revenue has 
gone down, until it now may be said to stand about 
£1,300,000. 

The main sources of this revenue are found in im- 
port duties on the rice imported from India for feeding 
the coolies and others directly or indirectly connected 
with the great planting enterprise of Ceylon, includ- 
ing a large proportion of the urban population. The 
Sinhalese and Tamil rice cultivators barely grow 
enough grain to support themselves and their depen- 



134 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

denta ; on locally-grown grain there is also a Govern- 
ment levy, th« remains of the old tithe or rent paid 
to the native kings, but this has been greatly reduced 
of late years by the application of commutation, so 

4 f. ,, 




that the import duty on grain is now decidedly protec- 
tive of local industry.* The other most productive 
import duties are those on wines, spirits, hardware, 



The Revenue and Expenditure of Ceylon, 135 

and cotton goods. Altogether the customs bring in 
between a quarter and a fifth of the entire revenue. 
The annual income from the railways all held by the 
Government (and 122 out of 185 miles the free pro- 
perty of the colony) makes up nearly as much of the 
general revenue as the Customs duties. Sales of Grown 
lands chiefly to planters have in some years also been 
as productive as the customs, but latterly the extent 
of land offered for sale, and the consequent revenue 
have greatly fallen off. Among the rules guiding the 
Forest Department formed of recent years is one prohi- 
biting the «ale of Grown forest abov^ 5000 feet or on the 
ridges of mountains or banks of rivers below that height* 
It is felt now that a great mistake was made fifty 
years ago in not keeping the proceeds of land sales in a 
separate fund as capital to be expended in reproductive 
public works, apart from the general revenue. The 
same may be said of the large railway receipts, in some 
years equal to a fifth of the revenue. Had this been 
done, the expenditure on fixed establishments would 
not have been allowed to increase year by year as if 
the general revenue from land sales and railway profits 
were a permanent source of income. The railway 
profits were for many years almost entirely due to the 
carriage of coffee from the interior to Colombo, and of 
rice, general goods, and manure for the plantations. 
Now tea (and tea requisites), with cinchona bark, cocoa, 
and other new products, take the place of coffee, to a 
great extent. Apart from the customs, the grain tax, 
land sales, and railway profits, the excise on the sale 
of spirits, stamp duties, and the monopoly or tax on 
salt, are the main sources of revenue, with an occa- 
sional contribution of from ^£10,000 to ^£50,000 from a 
pearl fishery. The latter is one of the most acceptable, 
but one of the most uncertain, sources of Ceylon wealth. 



a 






196 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 



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CHAPTEE XIV. 

WHAT ITS GOVERNMENT CAN DO FOR CEYLON, 

Active and independent Administrators required — The obstmction to 
progress offered in Downing Street — ^Railway extension, and 
Graving Dock at Colombo, urgently called for — ^Law reform 
needed — Technical, industrial, and agricultural education needs 
encouraging — The Buddhist Temporalities question — Fiscal re- 
form of Boad, Excise laws, Salt monopoly, Food taxes and Customs 
duties — The Duke of Buckingham's Ceylon and Southern India 
railway project — Ceylon and India — Waste Crown lands. 

As regards the wants of Ceylon^ its govemment is a 
paternal despotism ; and the Governor and Secretary 
of State (with his Colonial Office advisers) being 
to a great extent irresponsible rulers, much depends 
on their treatment of the island. There can be no 
doubt that in the past, progress has been made in 
spite of, rather than with, the prompt, zealous co- 
operation of Downing Street. In support of this view 
we would quote from a review in the London Spectator 
(January 1, 1887) of Mr. Salmon's " Crown Colonies 
of Great Britain " : — 

" The System of Crown Colonies is supposed to be 
that of a benevolent despotism, a paternal autocracy. 
It is in many cases that of a narrow and selfish olig- 
archy. It is supposed that the Colonial Office exer- 



138 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

cises a beneficial supervision, and is everywhere the 
guardian angel of the bulk of the population in all 
the British Colonies. The supposition that a few 
Civil Servants, most of whom have never lived out of 
England, or engaged in any trade or business but that 
of clerks in the Colonial Office, could really exercise 
any such power, is extravagant on the face of it. 
There are more than thirty Crown Colonies, as various 
and widely scattered as Hong Kong, Fiji, Cyprus, 
Malta, Heligoland, Jamaica, Honduras, Ceylon, and 
Sierra Leone. How could any body of officials in 
London, however large, highly educated, and capable, 
adequately exercise any form of real control or intelli- 
gent supervision over such a mixed lot of disjecta 
membra? As for the Secretary of State, who is 
changed, on the average, once a year, it is impossible 
that he can be more than a figure-head, or have any 
real voice in the determination of anything except 
large questions of policy when there is Colonial trouble. 
Parliament is, however, supposed to exercise a control." 
But this control is limited, as Mr. Salmon points out., 
to questions put from time to time in the House of 
Commons, the answers to which are supplied in the 
first instance by the same Colonial Office clerks, and 
in the last resort by the people who are to be con- 
trolled, the actual administrators of the various 
Colonies. 

We do not approve of much in Mr. Salmon's 
volume, especially in reference to Ceylon, which he 
has never visited, we believe, and of the circumstances 
of which he is necessarily to a great extent, ignorant. 
But we have had sad experience in Ceylon of the 
terrible loss of time, money and patience (equivalent 
to loyalty), increased through the obstructions offered 



What its Government can do for Ceylon. 189 

to well-considered local schemes of progress, by the per- 
manent officials of the Colonial Office speaking through 
the nominal and temporary Secretary of State. 

An active, energetic, independent Governor, how- 
ever, exercises an immense influence, especially if he 
is at the same time frank, free from any weakness for 
inquisitorial, underhand proceedings, and is inflexibly 
just. Every department of the public service, indeed 
almost every individual officer, feels the effect of such 
a ruler's presence, just as the whole administrative 
machinery goes to rest and rust in this tropical isle 
when the fountain-head of authority and honour is 
found to be somnolent and indifferent himself. 

Statesmen bred in the free air of the House of 
Commons, as a rule, make the best governors of 
Crown Colonies ; at least three or four in the Ceylon 
list — Governors Wilmot Horton, Stewart Mackenzie, 
Sir Henry Ward, and Sir William Gregory — had such 
a training, and stand out pre-eminently as among her 
best administrators, although equally able and useful 
were two others — Governors Sir Edward Barnes and 
Sir Hercules Eobinson — who had not home parlia- 
mentary experience. 

Ceylon wants a governor like Sir Henry Ward or 
Sir William Gregory, who has his whole heart in his 
work, is ready to sympathize with all classes and races, 
to see provinces, districts, and public works for him- 
self — by journeys on horseback where necessary — 
open to receive counsel as to proposed legislation 
from the most diverse quarters, while deciding for 
himself after giving it due consideration ; a Governor, 
moreover, not easily led away in his councils or 
provinces by officers, it may be of long experience but 
with special ** hobbies,'' nor by oriental gossip and 



140 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

^nspicioiiy which if once listened to leads into one 
quagmire after another. He should also apply as far 
as possible the commercial principle " Will it pay ? " 
to all proposed expenditure of any considerable 
amount^ whether on roads, irrigation works, or rail- 
ways. Such an administrator will always be the best 
gift that Britain can offer to the natives and colonists 
of Ceylon, provided that his hands are not tied by the 
Colonial Office in Downing Street. 

The only large public works at present under con- 
-struction in Ceylon may be said to be the restoration 
of the Ealewewa Irrigation tank and channels in the 
North-Central province, the Colombo Waterworks 
being completed all but an abortive Service Beservoir, 
the bursting of which reflects little credit on the 
engineers concerned. But the Extension of the 
Dimbula-Uva railway for twenty-five miles to Hapu- 
tale, to serve the populous and rich Uva principality, 
with its numerous native gardens and European 
plantations, urgently calls for construction ; for, 
without this Extension, the forty-two miles constructed 
to Nanu-oya cannot soon be profitable, the additional 
new traffic of Uva being required to make it so. 
This is a case in which the Colonial Office has baffled 
the wishes of the local public for so many years that 
at last divisions among the natives and colonists 
themselves arose on the subject, although no im- 
partial, intelligent person can doubt that much loss 
to both the districts concerned and the public revenue 
has resulted from the delay. An ordinance to provide 
for this Extension passed by the Legislative Council in 
January, 1886, has not yet been sanctioned by the 
Secretary of State, and a variety of excuses^hiefly 
the state of the revenue — being offered for the delay, al- 



Wliat its Government can do for Ceylon, 141 

though a sure way to depress the revenue is to deny and 
delay this all-profitable section of Eailway Extension. 
Sir Arthur Gordon has, as some people think, written 
almost too strongly on the subject ; but as yet without 
avail. Such is government from Downing Street. 
Another very profitable and equally delayed Eailway 
Extension is that from Kalutara to Galle or even 
Motara ; and very promising proposals include a 
branch line from Veyangode towards Euwanwela; a line^ 
from Heneratgoda to Negombo and thence to Chilau^ 
and Extension from Folgahawela to Kurunegala and 
on via Anuradhapura to Jafifna. A more immediately 
urgent public work is the construction of a Graving 
Dock for Colombo Harbour, which has the express 
favour of the Lords of the Admiralty and of the 
Colombo Chamber of Commerce, and would be certain 
to prove a most useful and remunerative work. Nearly 
all these proposals in fact come under the head of 
reproductive undertakings. A public loan for the 
the more pressing of these works — the Uva and Galle 
Eailway Extensions and the Graving Dock — may well 
be voted urgent, and we trust to see all these under- 
takings under construction very shortly. 

Eemembering that the colony within twenty-five 
years has paid, almost entirely through its planting 
enterprise, the whole cost of the grand Colombo and 
Kandy railway, with the seaside and Nawalapitiya 
branches — in all 120 miles, amounting to two and a 
half millions sterling, now the free property of the 
Ceylon Government; also that the harbour and 
waterworks (costing over a million sterling) are likely 
to pay their own way ; that the splendid network of 
roads and series of restored irrigation tanks and public 
buildings (costing six million pounds sterling) have- 



142 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

all been paid for from general revenue, there should 
be little hesitation in adding another three-quarters 
of, or a million pounds sterling to the debt of Ceylon 
— ^the whole debt even then not being much more 
than two years' revenue — in order to enable the above 
undertakings to be carried out. 

We may here call attention to the railway map of 
the island, illustrating the system existing and pro- 
jected, with needful statistics.* It shows at a glance 
the Ceylon Government Eailways completed ; the 
Extensions surveyed, estimated, and, we may add, 
officially promised ; other Extensions projected but 
not finally surveyed ; also possible lines which may 
be made eventually ; together with lines projected but 
abandoned. Among the lines projected, next to the 
Haputale and BaduUa Extension in importance are 
the Extension of the seaside line from Kalutara to 
Bentotta, nine miles ready for construction, and 
thence a distance of about thirty-four miles to Galle 
on almost a dead level, for which there can be little 
doubt of the existence of a profitable passenger and 
goods traffic ; secondly, the construction of a light line 
from a point at or near Veyangode towards Euwan- 
wela to serve the new and rapidly developing tea 
districts in that neighbourhood — and a branch 
which would prove a useful feeder to the main line, 
while it relieved one of the most expensively kept up 
roads in the country — namely, that via Hanwela and 
Avisawela, of a good deal of heavy traffic ; thirdly, a 
branch from Heneratgoda to Negombo, and possibly 
on to Ghilau : for the salt traffic ; fourthly, a branch 
from Folagahawela to Kurunegala, the capital of the 
North-Western province, which was proposed so far 

* See Appendix XVI. 



What its Government can do for Ceylon. 143 

back as the time of Sir Hercules Bobinso^, and for 
which we believe there would also be a remunerative 
traffic ; to be extended eventually via Dambula and 
Anuradhapura to Jaffna, Manaar, and perhaps by and 
by to Trincomalee. 

We would further call attention to the table of 
railway statistics given with the map, showing that 
notwithstanding last year being a time of a specially 
short cofifee crop and depression, the total profit from 
all the Government lines, including that to Matale, was 
no less than El, 139,621 (after covering the year's 
working expenses and certain permanent improve- 
ments to the lines, or the equivalent of nearly 4 per 
cent, on the capital cost of the 181 miles of railway 
open ; and this, be it remembered, although the full 
return on the large cost of the Nanu oya railway can 
never be obtained until the new Uva traffic is brought 
into it by the extension to Haputale. 

We would merely add that all but the Matale and 
Nanu-oya branches, or 121f miles, are the free property 
of the colony ; and the fact that the cost of this length 
has mainly been defrayed through the planting enter- 
prise is another and forcible argument for urging the 
extension of relief to one of the most important 
provinces of the island and by far the richest of the 
planting districts. Indeed a progressive policy in 
Eailway Extension generally is urgently called for. 

In legislative and social improvements there is 
much to do: law reform in improved Mortgage, 
Bankruptcy, and other measures — in fact, the codifi- 
cation of our Civil Laws — is urgently wanted ; while 
education, especially in the vernacular, has to be 
promoted. 

Still more needful is a system of technical, in^ 



144 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

dustrial and agricnltnral education. Something has 
been done towards a beginning in agricultural teach- 
ing by the present Director of Public Instruction with 
the limited means at his disposal ; but we can only 
speak of this as *' a beginning." It is felt by many 
that Ceylon junior civil servants, like those of Java, 
should pass at an agricultural college and spend one 
or two years on arrival in the island at Government 
experimental gardens or plantations. The influence 
of the personal example and precept of the revenue 
officers of Government over the head men and people 
in getting them to try new products or extend culti- 
vation is immense; experimental gardens to supply 
the natives with plants and seeds and to show them 
how to cultivate the same, ought to be multiplied and 
bonuses offered for the growth of certain qualities of 
new products in different districts. Another beneficial 
reform would be the establishment of an agri-horti- 
cultural exhibition, with holidays and sports for the 
people, in connexion with each Kachcheri (district 
station) in the island. 

The people of Ceylon are perhaps the least warlike 
of any nation under British rule : not a soldier has 
sustained a scratch here since ISIT, when the 
Kandyan kingdom was finally subdued. Street riots 
in Colombo through religious feuds or deamess of 
rice, at rare intervals, only require the sight of a 
red-coat to subside; a few artillerymen (a picked 
company of the local volunteers would do) with a 
light field-gun would be sufficient to cope with the 
most formidable gathering that could possibly take 
place as a breach of the peace. 

Nevertheless, it is important to note -that for. 
imperial pm*poses Ceylon is a most centraland useful 



What its Government can do for Ceylon. 145 

station for even more than one regiment of infantry 
with a good staff. This will be readily seen from 
what has happened during the past twenty-five years. 
Sir Henry Ward sent the 87th Eegiment at a day's 
notice to Calcutta in 1857 to the aid of Lord Canning 
against the mutineers, those troops being the first to 
arrive; in 1863 the troopship Himalaya took the 50th 
Eegiment from Ceylon to New Zealand to aid in 
suppressing the Maoris ; later on, part of the Ceylon 
garrison did good service in China^ the Straits, and 
Labuan ; in 1879 the 57th Eegiment was despatched 
at short notice to Natal ; and, with equal expedition, 
the 102nd was sent thither in 1881, when the colony 
was practically denuded of infantry without the 
slightest inconvenience. 

Ceylon is by far the most central British military 
garrison in the East ; its first-class port, Colombo, is 
distant 900 miles from Bombay, 600 from Madras, 
1,400 from Calcutta, 1,200 from Eangoon (Burmah), 
1,600 from Singapore, 2,500 from Mauritius, a little 
more from Madagascar, about 4,000 from Natal, 8,000 
from Hong-Kong, 8,000 from Freemantle or Western 
Australia, and about 2,500 from Aden. Its value, 
therefore, as a station from whence troops can, at the 
shortest notice, be transferred to any one of these 
points, should make it the Malta of the Eastern Seas ; 
indeed its hill station, served by railway, as already 
mentioned, might be made the sanatarium for all the 
troops in Southern India. 

Ceylon tax-payers would also fain see the head- 
quarters of the East India naval station removed 
from Trincomalee to Colombo, for the good of the 
port, now that first-class harbour works have been 
constructed ; and this would probably be done if only 

11 



146 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the construction of a Graving Dock were taken in 
hand. 

There are legislative reforms urgently needed in 
connection with the wide area of valuable lands with 
which the Kandyan Buddhist temples are endowed, 
and the revenues of which are now utterly wasted 
by priests and headmen without any benefit to the. 
people, the majority of whom would gladly vote for 
their appropriation to the promotion of vernacular 
and technical, especially agricultural, education in 
each district. It is recorded that King Wijayo Bahu 
III., who reigned in Ceylon in 1240 a.d., established a 
school in every village, and charged the priests who 
superintended them, to take nothing from the pupils, 
promising that he himself would reward them for 
their trouble. This was probably done by temple 
endowments now wasted. In the more distant future 
the intelligent public of Ceylon hopefuUy look for- 
ward to the time when a reconstruction if not miti- 
gation of taxation may take place, the road tax, some 
stamp dutiesy and the salt monopoly being the first to be 
modified or abolished. The smidl annual levy under 
the Boads or Thoroughfares Ordinance on every able- 
bodied man between eighteen and fifty-five in the 
island (the Governor, Buddhist priests, and a few 
more, alone excepted) has been productive of much 
good — ^in providing a network of district roads — 
since it was drafted by the late Sir Philip Wode- 
house over forty years ago. Bat in some districts, 
the tax, small as it is, leads to a good deal of 
trouble and expense through defaulters ; and its col- 
lection is everywhere, even in the towns, attended 
with an immense amount of corruption and oppres- 
sion. This is the case with all direct taxes in an 



What its Oovemment can do for Ceylon. 147 

Oriental land, and therefore an indirect levy in any 
form would undoubtedly be an unmitigated blessing 
to the people. Certain Stamp Duties were raised by 
Sir Arthur Gordon in 1885, and experience has shown 
that mischief rather than good has resulted. A 
liberal revision and reform of local Postal and Tele- 
:graphic rates and rules is much required, and a 
modification, if not abolition, of the Salt tax would 
be a great boon. This tax, though scarcely felt by 
the mass, debars agricultural improvement in certain 
directions, and occasionally affects the health of the 
people in the remoter districts. 

In the estimation of the reformers of the Gobden 
Club, as put forth in Mr. Salmon's book already 
referred to, there is a financial reform of greater im- 
portance than any of these, namely, the abolition of 
the "Food-taxes of Ceylon," or the levy made on 
locally -grown grain crops, and the Customs duty 
imposed on imported rice. But while the internal 
tax has been inherited from the Sinhalese rulers as a 
rent, the only substitute possible for both this and 
the Customs duty is a general land-tax, and against 
this the whole body of the natives would cry out. 
One of the most intelligent Sinhalese, the late Hon. 
James Alwis, M.L.C., opposing this proposal, said, "it 
would be equivalent to taxing the curry, as well as 
the rice of the people." The lands held by colonists 
could, of course, be taxed, though, having bought 
their properties in freehold, their position is rather 
different from that of planters in India. But the natives 
would resist any change in every way they possibly 
could, and even the Dutch, as well as the English, 
were baffled in trying to make a small levy on the 
coconut gardens of the Sinhalese, and had to abandon 



148 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

it.^ Of late yearsy the rent or tax on rice lands ha» 
been greatly lowered, and opportunities for oppres- 
sion by headmen removed, by Sir Wm. Gregory's 
system of commutation ; and Sir Arthur Gordon has. 
gone to the verge of imprudence by legislating for a 
certain portion of this rent being annually appro- 
priated by an Irrigation Board for the special benefit of 
the grain-growers. The section of the community 
paying the import duty, as indeed all consumers of 
taxed grain, may fairly complain and ask that some- 
thing should be done for them from the import levy,, 
which, as it now stands, is really protective of the 
local farmers. In principle, the rice taxes are fair — 
Stuart Mill being witness — and the heaviest por- 
tion of the tax is borne by the planters and their 
coolie labourers, who depend almost entirely on im- 
ported rice, while untaxed fruits, vegetables, and 
roots, enter largely into the food of the Sinhalese and 
Ceylon Tamils. 

Fiscal reformers for Ceylon would do well to study 
the history of the fish-tax established by the Portuguese,, 
continued by the Dutch, superseded by the British 
by a license for boats, which nearly stopped fishing 
altogether. The old form had to be resumed, but the 
tax was reduced again and again, without in the least 
benefiting the industry, for the fishermen simply 
caught less, having no longer duty to pay» and when 
the tax was finally abolished by Government, the^ 
Bomau CathoUe priests stepped in, and continued it 

• '* TV tticv^ |«e«kH» iiihmtaMM<» <^ a SiidttSew is his ancestral 
gai^l«ii ot <eoc<Mittt$ : lb* allnniiM tK> im{«» a tax on them in 1797» 
n»u9»d lh« |vpula<« K> wMlK>n« and it i$ ctttioasly UlostiatiTa of 
thai minutio ^uUiirinKHi ^>t )Mv>)MMt5. that a «ase decided in the 
l>i^n^l V\>utt Kxf i^K\ ^c4«vwd >^ the ^S:Mh part of 10 coconut 



What its Government can do for Ceylon, 149 

^ithont demur from the fishermen^ who are mostly of 
ihat Church. In the same way^ grain cultivators who 
have had their tax or rent remitted, have been known 
to allow a portion of their fields to go out of cultiva- 
iion in view of no rent -to pay — so much less work 
io do was their idea of the benefit of remission of 
taxation. 

Of course the removal of all Customs' duties and 
ihe inauguration of Colombo as a free port would add 
immensely to the importance of Colombo and the 
-colony. But the time for that is still afar off, even if 
it were desirable in the interests of the native popu- 
lation. On the contrary, if all the revenues raised in 
-such dependencies as India and Ceylon could be 
levied through the customs, the railway, or even 
stamps — ^by indirect means — the blessing to the mass 
of the people for some generations yet, would be one 
of the greatest that could be bestowed. When the 
grand scheme which the Duke of Buckingham, as 
■Governor of Madras, propounded to Sir William 
•Gregory, of connecting the railway systems of Ceylon 
and Southern India, is carried out, in order to serve 
the very large passenger traffic in coolies and traders, 
as well as to carry the produce of Southern India 
to the safe and commodious Colombo harbour — the 
Madras harbour works being, at all events for the 
present, a great failure; — ^then may we look for a 
oloser approximation between the fiscal systems of 
the two countries. At present India has no import 
iax on cotton goods — a very dubious reform in the 
interest of her people — ^but an export tax is levied on 
ihe rice shipped from Calcutta and Madras to Ceylon. 

One great difference between the two countries 
is the much larger Covenanted Civil Service, and 



150 Ceylon in the Jvbilee Year. 

number of European officials generally, in Ceylon, in 
proportion to population and area, than in India.^ 
Of coarse the individual salaries are much lower here,, 
but it is a question whether the island has not toa 
many public servants of the higher ranks, and 
whether there is not room for reform in the system 
of administration such as was referred to by Sir 
Emerson Tennent in his Financial Beports over forty 
years ago. The pension list of Ceylon is becoming 
a serious burden to the colony, and some steps 
are urgently called for to prevent a continuance of 
growth such as has been experienced of recent years.. 
On the other hand the cry is getting up here, as in 
India, on behalf of the educated Ceylonese (natives 
and Burghers), that room should be found for a 
greater number of them in the public service. 
Schemes for a subordinate uncovenanted service have 
been propounded, both in their interest and in that 
of economy, as saving the need for many principal 
appointments, and some step in this direction may 
be necessary before long. At the same time, in a 
country situated like Ceylon, agriculture in one of its 

* Ceylon for its three millions of people and 24,000 square miles 
has more than half as many Giyil Servants as the Presidency of 
Madras with six times its area and ten times its population. The 
following may be of general interest : — 











No. of Cove- 






Area : Sq. 


Popula- 


nanted Civil 






miles. 


tion. 


Servants. 


Bengal and Assam 


• • 


202,905 . . 


72,000,000 


.. 266 


N.-W. Province 


• • 


106,111 . . 


44,107,000 


* * 1 «^ J i-V 


Punjaub 


• • 


106,632 . . 


18,850,000 


- 348 
• • ) 


Bombay 


• • 


124,122 . . 


16,500,000 


.. 162 


Madras . . • « 


• • 


139,900 . . 


31,000,000 


.. 157 


Bnrmah (Upper 


and 








Lower) 


• • 


278,000 . . 


6,736,000 




Ceilon 


• • 


25,000 .. 


2,900,000 


.. 81 



What its Government can do for Ceylon. 151 

many forms ought to be kept steadily before educated 
Burghers and natives alike, as the one sure means of 
affording a livelihood. Tea planting, we are glad to 
think, is likely to do much for young men of these 
classes; in the tea factories there should be room 
for a large number of intelligent young men of 
the country, as tea makers, clerks, &c., and very 
many of the natives ought to cultivate tea-gardens 
of their own, besides trying other new and profitable 
products. 

A reform tending to extend local industry would 
be the throwing open, for a merely nominal price, 
of Crown waste lands, at present unsaleable (at the 
upset price of ElO per acre), to cultivators who 
would spend money and labour on them. This ap- 
plies to both low and high lands. A " stock farm '* 
is a great want in Ceylon, yet an ofifer made by a 
responsible colonist to lease waste Crown lands near 
Nawara Eliya, and introduce good stock in cattle and 
horses from Australia, was rejected some years ago, 
because the fiat of the Secretary of State had decided 
that nothing should be done with Crown lands over 
6,000 feet altitude. 



CHAPTER XV. 

SOCIAL LIFE AND CUSTOM& 

Social life and customs of the natives of Ceylon — ^How little colonists 
may know of village life — Domestie servants — Caste lestiietions — 
Carious occupations among the people — Sinhalewe phUanthiopists, 
Messrs. De Soyza and Bajapakse. 

The variety of race, colour, physiognomy, and costume 
among the people in the busy streets of Colombo — 
especially the Pettah, or native market-place — at once 
arrests the attention of the stranger. But, save what 
he sees in the pnblic highways, and may learn from 
his servants, the ordinary colonist may Uve many 
years in the island without learning much of the every- 
day life and habits of the people of the land, whether 
Sinhalese or Tamils, in their own villages and homes. 
There is a beaten track now for the European to 
follow, be he merchant or planter, and there is so 
much of western civilisation and education on the 
surface that the new comer is apt to forget very soon 
that he is in the midst of a people with an ancient 
civilization and authentic history of their own, extend- 
ing far beyond that of the m^vxrity of European 
nations ; and with social customs and modes of life, 
when separate from f(.>rte^igu intf uemN^ entirely distinct 
from auything to which he has Uf^>]i accustomed. The 



Social Life and Customs. 158 

foreigners who see somewhat of this inner life of the 
people, especially in the rural districts, are the civil 
servants and other public officers of Government, 
and the missionaries. Now, as regards the work of 
the latter, the average European planter or merchant 
returning home after six, ten, aye, or even twenty years 
in Ceylon, too often declares that the missionaries are 
making no way in Ceylon, that they live comfortably in 
the towns, and content themselves with ordinary pas- 
toral duties in their immediate neighbourhood, and in 
fact, that they (the colonists), never saw any evidence 
of mission work or progress among the natives, unless 
it were through the catechists and other agents of the 
Tamil Coolie Mission visiting the plantations. Now, 
the way to meet such a negative statement would be 
ly an inquiry as to whether the colonist had ever 
interviewed a missionary to the Tamils or Sinhalese, 
whether in Colombo, Kandy, or Galle, to go no further, 
and had asked to accompany him to his stations. 
Had he done so, he could have been taken to village 
after village, with its little church and good, if not 
full, attendance of members, presided over in many 
•cases by pastors of their own people, and in some 
instances supported by themselves. He would have 
8een schools of all grades — ^mission boarding-schools 
for native girls and lads, and training institutions for 
the ministry. Now, just as this branch of work in 
the rural districts of Ceylon is unknown to many 
scores, if not hundreds, of European colonists who 
never trouble their heads about anything beyond their 
own round of immediate duties or pleasures ; so it is, 
for an even wider circle, in reference to the social life 
•and customs of the natives. 

Education has made such strides that in the towns. 



164 



Ceylon in tlie Jubilee Year. 



English is rapidly becoming the predominant language 
among all classes. In Lidia all foreigners learn a 
native language, and domestic servants never think of 
speaking English, even if some few of them nnder- 




stand it. Here, in Ceylon, English is almoet oniver- 
sally in domestic use, and there is scarcely a roadside 
village in Ceylon now where the traveller could not 
find some persons to speak English, or interpret for 



Social Life and Customs. 155 

him. The coolies on the plantations are different; 
with few exceptions they only know Tamil, and the 
planters have to learn that language colloquially. 
Civil servants pass examinations in the languages. 
Very amusing are some of the^ servants; occasionally^ 
who are only beginning to acquire English, or who try 
to show a command beyond their depth; like the 
Sinhalese appoo (butler) who, one day, on being 
remonstrated with by his Christian mistress for 
^•ttending some tomfooleries of ceremonies at a temple,, 
replied, Yes, he knew better, but he only did it " to 
please the womens " (his wife and daughters !), the 
hold of superstition and heathenism in Ceylon, aa 
elsewhere, being strongest on the female portion of 
the household. On another occasion a horsekeeper 
(Tamil groom), coming to report to his master that hia 
horse had gone lame, expressed himself thus, holding 
up his fingers in illustration, " Sar, three legs very 
good ; one leg very bad ! " Some of the letters and peti- 
tions in English of budding clerks, or warehousemen^ 
or other applicants for situations, are often comical in 
the extreme. Both Sinhalese and Tamils make the 
most docile and industrious of domestic servants. Of 
course there are exceptions, but ladies who have been 
for some years in Ceylon, after visiting " home " again^ 
or especially after going to Australasia or America, are 
usually glad to get back to their native servants. 

Caste in Ceylon has not one tithe the hold on the 
people that it has in India, and in respect of domestic 
service, only one-half to one-third the number of men- 
servants is required here, in consequence of one man 
making no objection to different kinds of work. Sin- 
halese " appoos " and " boys," with their often smooth 
cheeks, and hair done up in a knot, surmounted by a 



156 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

€omb, and with white jackets and long"comboys" (long 
petticoats) 9 are frequently taken for female servants, 
the latter having no comb, bnt a silver or other pin in 
their hair, and only taking service as ayah (nurse), or 
lady's attendant. In the hotels passengers frequently 
make the mistake of supposing they are attended by 
maid, instead of men, servants. The Sinhalese have, 
indeed, been called the women of the human race, and 
the story is that in trying to make soldiers of them, 
the British instructors in the early days never could 
get them not to fire away their ramrods ! 

Of course there are some bad native servants, but 
they are the exceptions ; at any rate a good master 
and mistress generally get good service. But some- 
times robberies do occur in households, and usually 
then some one or other of the servants has been con- 
spiring with outside thieves. A few colonists prefer 
Malay servants. 

The demand for holidays is often a nuisance, and 
the saying is that native servants must have half a 
dozen grandfathers each from the number of funerals 
of grandfathers they have to attend. The fact is that 
the western habit of constant work does not suit the 
Oriental taste at all, the proverbial saying of the 
Buddhist Sinhalese being, '' Better to walk than to run, 
to sit down than walk, and best of all to go to sleep." 

We have said that caste has not a great hold in 
€eylon; but in one point of social life, it is* still 
almost universally observed, there can be no marriage 
between persons of different castes. Tour servant 
may be a man of higher caste than your wealthy native 
neighbour driving his carriage, and yet the appoo 
would probably never consent to allow his daughter 
to marry the son of the rich but lower caste man. 



(Socio/ Life and Cuttoma. 157 

Christianity is vorking against caste, and among 
native Christians there are many cases of caste being 
disregarded ; but, on the other hand, when the Dnke 
of Edinbnigh was entertained by a Sinhalese gentle- 
man of medinm caste, it was stated that Sinhalese 




ofBciaU (including a Christian chaplain) of the Vel- 
lale (agiicnltaral) caste absented themselves from the 
entertainment where all were expected to be, because 
they conld not enter the groands or honse of a man 
of the Fisher caste. The most striking case in recent 



158 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

times in Ceylon was that of a young girl of good 
family in a Kandyan village, who fell in love with the 
«on of a trader in the same village, of greater wealth 
but lower caste than her father, who was a decayed 
Chief. The lad and girl had seen each other in 
school days, and acquaintance had ripened into more 
than friendship, and they were bent on defying caste, 
family opposition, and any other obstacle to their 
marriage. But a young brother of the girl haughtily 
forbade the courtship, threatening his sister if ever 
he saw her with the young trader. The lovers 
planned a clandestine match, so far that (being both 
Buddhists) they should get married by civil registra- 
tion before the magistrate. They stole away one 
morning and were mixing in the crowd usually await- 
ing the opening of the magistrate's court in county 
iiowns, when the young chief, finding out what had 
•happened, rushed up and peremptorily ordered his 
sister home. She refused and clung to her lover, 
when the brother suddenly drew a knife from his 
girdle and stabbed her to the heart. She fell dead on 
the spot; the murderer holding the knife aloft and 
shouting, in Sinhalese, " Thus I defend the honour of 
my family,*' and going to the scaffold a few weeks 
after, exulting in his deed. Education and the rail- 
way are, however, aiding Christianity to weaken the 
hold of caste, and the people of Ceylon will, before 
many generations go by, learn that — 



t( 



Honour and shame from no condition rise, 
Act well your part, there all the honour lies " ; 



And that — 



" From yon blue heavens above us bent. 
The grand old gardener and his wife, 
Smile at the claims of long (or caste) descent.'* 



Social Life and Customs. 159 

It is a striking evidence of the slight influence of 
Bnddhism that here, in its sacred or holy land, where 
it has prevailed for over two thousand years, caste, 
which is utterly condemned by its founder and its 
tenets, still exercises a baneful influence over the 
Sinhalese people. All castes, however low, were de- 
x^lared to be eligible to Buddha's priesthood ; but in 
€eylon ordination gradually became the privilege of 
i;he Yellale caste alone, until a Sinhalese of a lower 
<;aste went to Burmah and got ordained, so making 
i;wo castes of priests in the island. In other Buddhist 
<;ountries, burmah, Siam, and Thibet, caste does not 
-exist in any similar form. A stanza from a Ceylon 
Buddhist work runs as follows — 

" A man does not become low caste by birth, 

Nor by birth does one become high caste ; 

High caste is the result of high actions — 

And by actions does a man degrade himself to a caste that is low."* 

Native weddings, with the peculiarities of each 
race — Sinhalese, Tamil, or Moormen (Mahomedan) — 
^xe sometimes very curious, and, as the parties are 
generally rather proud than otherwise of Europeans 
being present, there is no difficulty about getting an 
invitation. The youthfulness of the bride — ^perhaps 
thirteen to fifteen years — and the quantity of jewellery, 
literally weighing her down (collected and borrowed 
from all the family circle of relatives for the occasion), 
are two peculiarities.. There are scarcely any un- 
married native women, and, as is. always the case in 
a naturally ordered community, the males exceed the 
females in number. The Sinhalese have no army or 
navy or flow of emigration to supply, and no artificial 
-customs to interfere witk or delay the marriage of 

* See Appendix with extracts on '* Caste.'' 



160 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

their daag^ters. Of the influence of the Buddhist and 
Hindu religions apon the people, enoagh Ib said else- 
where, hat we may jast refer here to the fact that a 
people bred under the inflnenceof tenets (Baddhi8t),for- 




biddmg the taking of life, have developed some of the 
most cruel and exquisite forma of torture known to his- 
tory in reference to the lower animals. A law had to be 



Social Life and Customs. 161 

passed forbidding the roasting of tortoises alive, in 
order to get the tortoise-shell of a finer lustre than if 
taken from the dead animal ; and only the other day 
a military officer discovered in Colombo that native 
cooks were in the habit of cutting out the tongues of 
the living turkeys, in order that the flesh, when 
cooked, might be the more tender. But a long list of 
such instances might be given, as well as illustrations 
of the hypocrisy which makes Buddhist fishermen 
say: "We do not kill the fish, we take them out of 
the water and they die of themselves ! " Householders 
put out the old dog or cat on the highway for the 
wheel of a passing vehicle to go over and kill, so that 
they may have no sin; or shut up the deadly snake 
in wicker-work on the river to be carried to the sea; 
while early in the present century it was the custom 
to expose old and helpless human beings in the jungle, 
each with a bowl of rice and chatty of water, to die with- 
out troubling their relatives, or to be devoured, as was 
often the case, by beasts of prey. And all this in one 
of the most bigoted of Buddhist districts — Matara — ^in 
the south of the island. It was in the same district 
a veteran missionary demonstrated the hypocrisy of 
a catechist, of whom he had authentic accounts 
that, while professing to be doing certain work as a 
Christian teacher for the sake of a salary, he was in 
heart a Buddhist, attending all the temple ceremonies. 
In a remote village there was no check, and on being 
questioned by the missionary, while sitting in a room 
together, he utterly denied that he had any belief in 
£uddhism. Taking a small brass image of Buddha 
from his pocket, the missionary placed it on the table, 
when immediately (as all Buddhists should do) the 
would-be catechist sprang to his feet, placed his hands 

12 



162 Ceylon in the JtCbilee Year. 

before his forehead with a low obeisance towards the 
image, and then slunk from the room discomfited ! 

Among the more curious occupations of the people,, 
as related in the census, are such novelties as 1,532 
devil-dancers (see page 160), 36 jugglers and monkey- 
dancers, 121 snake charmers, 240 astrologers and 
fortune-tellers, 82 actors and puppet-showmen, 640* 
tom-tom beaters, 160 comedians and nautch dancers,. 
16,357 dhobies or washermen (see page 157), nearly 
2,000 barbers, 50 elephant-keepers and huntsmen,, 
about 5,000 fakirs and devotee-beggars, 1,500 grave- 
diggers, 200 lapidaries, 400 workers in ivory and 
tortoise-shell, and 3,000 in jewellery, &c.* 

European civilization and Christianity are botb 
taking a firm hold of the people. Education is 
desired by the natives, perhaps not yet for its own. 
sake, but as a means of advancement, as very few 
good posts are to be obtained in which English is not, 
needed. 

Once in our mission schools (and education, espe- 
cially in the villages, is mainly in the hands of the 
missionaries) children acquire new habits of industry 
and perseverance, and in time come to regard truth- 
fulness as desirable, and care for others, whether of 
their own blood or not, as a duty. Though Buddha 
led a most self-denying life, and taught others to da 
the same, yet his example had made small impression 
on his followers, and philanthropy was not regarded 
as a duty by the Sinhalese or their priests. Now it 
is different. Each of our missions can quote many 
instances of noble generosity and hearty zeal for the 
welfare of the people. 

* The main results of the census will be found tabulated in 
Appendix VI. 



Social Life and Cttgtoms. 163 

The de Soysa family, eepeoially C- H. do Soysa, 
Esq., J.P., Mudliyar of the Grovemor's Gate — whose 
engraving we give, and who is expected by the people 
of Ceylon to be knighted by Her Most Graoioaa 
Majesty in this Jubilee year — are well known as the 




leading native phitanthropiEts iu Ceylon. That the 
present representative of the family has made a good 
nse of his wealth may be seen from the by no means 
complete list of hie benefactions which will be found 
in Appendix XII. 



164 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Ko less worthy of recoid are the benefactiona and 
good vorkfl of Sampson de Bajapakse, Esq., J.P,, 
MndliyoF of the Governor's Gate, of an ancient and 
honourable family. We give his portrait in full 




aattaoti de hUinxsE, esq., j.p. 

official dress as Mudlijar, and also bis genealogical 
tree as a curiosity {see Appendix SIII.). 

Pour encourager lee autres. If the notice of two of 
oui pbilanthropists and the publication of their bene- 
factions should prove an mcentive to other wealthy 
Oriental British snbjects to follow the example of 



Social Life and CiLStoms. 165 

Messrs. de Soysa and Bajapakse, there will be perhaps 
sufl&cient excuse for this memorial of their liberality 
to the Ceylon community. 

We have merely touched the skirts of topics 
in this chapter, which might well require for their 
treatment a volume in themselves. Those interested 
in the subject may be referred to good old Eobert 
Knox's veracious account of his sojourn, as a prisoner, 
among the Kandyan people for twenty years — 1659 
to 1680 — or to more modern books, in Cordiner's, 
Percival's, Davy's, Forbes's, Pridham's, or Emerson 
Tennent's histories, with Spenco Hardy's "Eastern 
Monachism," "Jubilee Memorials," and "Legends 
of the Buddhists." 



CHAPTEE XVI. 

CONCLUSION. 

Eelation and importance of Ceylon to India — Progress of Christianity 
and Education — Statistics of Population — Need of Beform in the 
Legislative Council, and sketch of a scheme for the Election of 
Unofficial Members — Loyalty of People to British Bule, as 
evinced during Boyal visits, and in connection with the Jubilee 
of Her Majesty the Queen-Empress — Jubilee Celebration. 

Ceylon, in a social and political way, bears the same 
relation to India and the Far East that England has 
done to the European continent. Mr. Laing, when 
Finance Minister for India, confessed it was most 
valuable to law- makers and administrators in the 
Indian Presidencies, to have Ceylon under a separate 
form of government, and to have experiments in 
administrative and legislative reforms tried here, 
which served as an example or a warning to the big 
neighbouring continent, the peoples being allied in so 
many respects. There is, for instance, no distinction 
made between native and European judges and magis- 
trates in Ceylon ; and the acting Chief Justice, lately, 
was a Eurasian, while at present a Sinhalese barrister 
is Judge of the Supreme Court ; and other Ceylonese 
fill the responsible oflSces of Attorney-General and 



Local Religions, 



167 



Solioitor-General of the Colony. Again, in Caylon, 
we have a decimal system of currency, a great step in 
advance of the cnmbrous Indian Byetem, and we have 
entire freedom of all religions (including Christianity) 
&om State patronage and control. 

The progress of ChriHtianity and education among 
lie people is greater than in any other Eastern State, 
•and should Buddhism, the religion of one and three- 




qnartera of a million of Smhalese, fall here it would 
Itave a great effect on the millions of Burmah, giam, 
and even China, who look to Ceylon as the sacred 
home of Buddhism The kings of Burmah and Siam 
especially, continue to take an interest in, and make 
ofFenngs to, the Buddhist "temple of the tooth" at 
£andy Boman Catholicism has been propagated 
■since the arrival of the Portuguese m the sixteenth 



168 Ceylon. in the Jubilee Year, 

century ; while English Protestant missions have^ 
worked in Ceylon since 1811.* The Eoman Catholics 
number about 220,000, the Protestants 60,000, against 
1,700,000 Buddhists and demon worshippers, 600,000 
Hindus, and nearly 200,000 Mohammedans. The 
population at the census of 1881 included 6,300 Budd- 
hist, 1,250 Hindu, and 574 Mohammedan priests, 
465 Christian ministers and missionaries, 2,210 
schoolmasters, 759 lawyers and notaries public, and 
3,321 physicians and medical practitioners of all 
grades. 

Some allusion should be made to more than one 
local movement in Ceylon for a reform in the 
system of government, and more especially in the 
liberalizing of the Legislative Council. Sir Hercules 
Eobinson, while opposing this claim, originated 
municipal institutions in the three principal towns, 
as a means of training the people in the art of 
self-government. The working of these has, how- 
ever, unfortunately, not been so successful as was 
hoped, and one reason is a curiously oriental one, 
namely, that respectable Ceylonese consider it 
derogatory to go and ask the people below them — 
often ignorant and poor franchise-holders — for "the 
honour of their votes.** "Honour comes from above, 
not from below," they say; and so the better classes 
of natives abstained from the Municipal Boards, and 
left many disreputable men to get in. A reformed 
and restrictive municipal constitution law just passed,, 
may work better. But as regards the Legislature, 
the occupation of one of three seats allotted to tha 
Ceylonese by nomination of the Governor has always 

* For illustrations of the progress of modem Protestant Christian 
Missions, see Appendix III. 



Legislative Reform. 169 

been greatly coveted, and an object of ambition ta 
every rising man in the country.* A reform in the 
present practice of according what are practically life 
seats, would be to change the unofficial membera 
every three years, so educating and testing an increas- 
ing number of Ceylonese for public life. There is na 
reason, however, why a few more unofficial seats should 
not be added to the Legislative Board. Indeed, the 
elective principle might, under due safeguards, be 
applied in the eight provinces of the island, — under 
a severely restricted franchise to begin with, — so giving 
eight elected unofficial members, to whom might be 
added two to four nominees of the Governor, from 
among the merchants or other classes not adequately 
served by the elections. Elections and nominations 
could take place every six years, or on the advent of 
each new Governor, and a few more privileges might 
be accorded to the members, such as the right of initia- 
ting proposals, even where such involved the expendi- 
ture of public money up to a certain moderate limit. 
The Governor, for the time being, could always com- 
mand a majority against any unwise scheme, and his 
own veto, as well as that of the Secretary of State, 
would continue operative. Some such improvement 
of the Legislative Council — which has continued with- 
out change for over fifty years, or since the days of 
Governor Sir Eobert Wilmot Horton in 1838 — cannot 
long be delayed, and if asked for on broad grounds by 
a united community, it might well be granted in honour 
of the Queen^s Jubilee year. 

Another practical reform of importance would be 
the ensuring that four out of the six members of the 

* For further information about the government, see Summary of 
Information concerning Ceylon (Appendix VIII.). 



170 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Executive Council — that is, the Colonial Secretary, 
Attorney-General, Auditor-General, and Treasurer — 
should always be trained public servants of the 
<5olony, with local experience. The farce has been 
seen even in recent years of a Governor and his 
five Executive advisers in Ceylon, not counting half a 
dozen years of local experience between them. 

Ceylon was honoured with a visit from H.R.H. the 
Duke of Edinburgh in 1870, from H.R.H. the Prince 
of "Wales in 1875, and from the young Princes Albert 
and George of Wales in 1881. On each occasion the 
loyalty and devotion of the people to the British 
Crown, and their warm personal interest in the happi- 
ness and welfare of their sovereign, were very con- 
«picuou8« This has been still more shown during the 
pn^sent yoar» in connection with the Jubilee of Her 
Mo!?t Gracious Miyesty the Queen-Empress Victoria, 
wh^u M classes and races have vied with each other 
in tlio ondoavoor to do honour to the occasion. 
LiWral support has been given to the Imperial Insti- 
tute. do<iir to the Queen ; as a local memento of the 
\>ee;^4vXM. HI Home for Incurables is to be erected in 
Cv4omK\ a4ul loxnU addresses^ as well as a Women's 
Offmwg. haw been s^nt to Windsor. 

The Jubilee w;iis celebmt^ ihiv>ughout Ceylon with 
^:t^t e:ia)umA$iu. In Colombo w;as the chief demon- 
;^tilit40il. tl\Al i>f i\v^ ti.e he<jid->^)5axteis of the lepresen- 
t^tJive of tl\e Quocxx ^ l^t tiie ^cCe of ibe island towns 
\w\v ^e 5^;a tv^ iwive Neei^. o<<v\rfc^M and i'mj7u. The 
Mf/tt^iv K'TXTe^ oi; vt^'.e F^iu^e Espduoade at 7 aan., 
x^^5(t iJ^ ewixt of tl^ v,v«r,:^ oc ibe rt««y-ei;^th, in 
t'^e xM^vJl^i^v ^^\\ il^Ne \\\:5(;^ti:>if ir? ^ibaKvi ^li: the regulars 
t*.><^ xXxUi^e^s y-sf ti^^ yVOA;s?0Jfi. T5je -^^h iv 'i/i« and three 
>''^'^>^ o^>TV<^xr^^w ibe ^<»^3^«^" e.\7^:^esdcMa of loyalty 



Jubilee Celebration. 171 

at its close. This was followed at 10.80 by services 
in all the places of worship. In the Mis3ion Churches 
the interesting feature was the union of English, Sin- 
halese, Tamils, and even Portuguese descendants, at 
the same service, addresses being given in all four 
languages in succession. The Queen's letter, request- 
ing that prayer and thanksgiving be offered up, had 
been sent from Queen's House to the different pastors, 
and was duly read at the services, while at the close 
a collection was made in many churches for the 
*' Ceylon Victoria Home for Incurables." 

Then came the feeding of large numbers of the 
poor in all the towns and chief villages, each applicant 
getting either a measure of rice and five cents (one 
penny), or a piece of calico. 

A good dinner was given by the citizens of Colombo 
<led by Mr. J. J. Grinlinton) to the soldiers in garrison 
and their wives and children, numbering 951 persons. 

In the afternoon came the great celebration on Galle 
Face Esplanade, Colombo, where from fifteen to twenty 
graceful pandals had been erected for the accommoda- 
tion of the many who could not stand exposure to a 
tropical sun. Noticing can exceed the graceful beauty 
of such erections, when the Sinhalese and Tamils set 
themselves to do their best ; loops of plaintain and 
young coco-nut leaf, green moss and fern, and yellow 
olas, and clusters of coco-nuts, oranges, or other fruits, 
offer the best possible material for covering the bamboo 
framework that may be put together in a night. 

It is computed that about 25,000 human beings of 
a.11 classes and races, the vast majority clad in bright 
garments, varying from white to the richest and most 
brilliant hues, were assembled round the centre where 
the Governor read the Record of the Chief Events of 



172 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the Fifty Tears, received the Address from the in- 
habitants of Ceylon to their Gracious and Beloved 
Monarch, and made proclamation of the Queen's 
desire (in conjunction with her God-fearing subjects- 
everywhere) to return thanks to Almighty God for the 
blessings of the fifty years ; to see the Royal Standard 
hoisted and to hear the salute of fifty guns fired in 
honour of the Eoyal Lady who had reigned so long^ 
and so well. High festival as it was, the quiet and 
orderly conduct of the crowd was the subject of 
emphatic and approving remark. Amongst the most 
interesting incideots of the day was the singing of 
the Eoyal Anthem by the Sunday-school children, and 
the procession of these and other young people, 
scholars in the various schools and colleges to the 
number of about 2,000. There were numerous pro- 
cessions of various races and religionists, including 
some seventy-seven Buddhist priests in bright yellow 
robes, men who must be better than their creed, if 
they sincerely joined in the thanksgiving to Almighty 
God. Salutes consisting of the cracking of long 
Kandyan whips were sources of curiosity to new- 
comers, while the chanting of both Malay and Sin- 
halese processions to well-known popular tunes 
produced much amusement. One of the most striking 
incidents of the day was the appearance of Arabi and 
three of his fellow-exiles — Mahmood Samy, Toulba^ 
and Abdulal, at the head of the Muhammadan pro- 
cession. Their appearance imparted an element of 
romance to the proceedings, reminding one of those 
"Arabian Nights Tales,*' in which the isle of Serendib 
figures so prominently. The most fertile of imagina- 
tions could not, some years ago, have anticipated that 
a contingent of Egyptian oflBcers, exiled to Ceylon for 



Jubilee Celebration. 178 

rebellion against their own sovereign, should take a 
voluntary part in celebrating the Jubilee of a Queen 
-whose army had defeated the forces which they had 
led in insurrection, and so rendered abortive their 
ambitious (or patriotic ?) designs. 

The other three Egyptian exiles, Ally Fehmy, 
Mahamood Fehmy, and Yacoob Samy, preferred 
presenting an address at Queen's House, which the 
<jovernor received and promised to forward to Her 
Majesty. The following is a literal translation of 
iheir address written in Arabic : — 

"May it please your Excellency, — With heart- 
felt loyalty, we the undersigned Egyptian exiles in 
this country, though few our number, have reason to 
approach your Excellency on this auspicious day set 
apart by your Excellency for the celebration, by the 
general public of this island, of the Jubilee of Her 
Oracious Majesty Victoria, Queen of England, and 
Empress of India, whom your Excellency as Euler of 
this country represents, and we beg to address the 
following : — 

"No one would deny that for the period of fifty 
years during which Her Majesty has uninterruptedly 
•occupied the throne. Her Majesty has been just and 
merciful, and the brightness of her reign has reflected 
all over the world, and been a source of gratitude 
which we always feel in our hearts, and of which we 
are full. 

" We pray for all those gracious and liberal gifts 
to us that Almighty God may bless Her Majesty and 
give her grace, prolong her glorious and beneficent 
reign, and give her health, happiness, and honour. 

" We must confess that> in our position which is 



174 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

known to all, the pain in the centre of our hearts, as. 
strangers from our country, felt, has been removed 
since our stay in this country, by the prompt extension 
to us of relief and justice, by the many acts of kind- 
ness, humanity, and generosity done to us. All these 
acted as a remedy which cured the pain which we felt 
in our hearts, making room for our peace and comfort. 

''We have indeed, therefore, special reason to be 
most sincerely loyal and faithful, and to humbly yield 
to the feelings and inclinations of our hearts. We 
beg, therefore, to lay at the foot of Her Maj.esty's 
throne our unbounded heartfelt thanks, and to offer 
the same to your Excellency, as Her Majesty's great 
Eepresentative in this country, in which we enjoy 
favours and overflowing justice. 

" We feel infinite happiness and pleasure that we 
are accorded the privilege of taking a part ourselves 
in the enjoyments of this joyful, happy, and auspicious 
day, set apart for the honour and praise of Her 
Majesty the Queen." 

Other addresses were presented to the Governor for 
transmission to Her Majesty by the people of Ceylon, 
the legislative Council, the Planters' Association, 
which represents the backbone of the prosperity of 
the island, and the small Malay community. From 
the latter we quote a part : — 

" We desire to offer your Excellency, as the repre- 
sentative of her Majesty Queen Victoria, our sincerest 
and dutiful thanks for the manifold advantages we 
have received during the beneficent reign of Her 
Majesty, through her many noble representatives who 
ruled this island. It is with the proudest satisfaction 



Jubilee Celebration. 17& 

we say, and in saying it we are but expressing the- 
feeling of the entire Malay community, that no com- 
munity has proved more loyal and faithful ; and it& 
loyalty and fidelity have stood the very best tests. 
Fifty years ago, when Her Majesty ascended the 
throne, the Malays constituted a Military Corps, they 
rendered valuable service abroad and in this island^ 
which, although it has been only the land of their 
adoption, has, in consequence of the disbandment of 
the corps in 1873, become their home. A mere 
military corps has during the last fifty years made 
rapid strides towards material advancement, and 
what had been a mere corps of a few hundred fighting 
men has developed into a large, free, and independent 
community. This happy realization is due to the 
beneficent rule of Her Majesty Queen Victoria. It 
nevertheless still retains its martial spirit, and we 
may assure your Excellency, should there ever be 
occasion for it, the Malays to a man would joyfully 
rally round the British Standard and fight to the 
death like good soldiers." 

The different colleges of Colombo each had their 
own pandal, and a visitor would be very much in- 
terested in the Ceylonese lads trained in the Eoyal, St. 
Thomas's and Wesley Colleges, in the Medical College ; 
and also in the pandal headed, *' Widyodaya College, "^ 
inside of which were ranged in rows, some seventy-five 
Buddhist students, clad in their yellow robes, these 
being with a few exceptions made of silk ; while in front,, 
in a sanctum all by himself, sat Sumangala, the high 
priest of Adam's Peak, and president of the College. 
These young celibates, though they had their fans in 
their hands, did not make much use of them, but stared 



176 Ceylon in the Jvhilee Year. 

about and enjoyed the fun as much as any one else. 
What would the Buddha have said if he had seen 
them thus gathered to do honour to a woman (accord- 
ing to his dictum woman is — not sinful — but ain 
itself !) ; and to hear later on, when the school 
•children were singing "God save the Qaeen," a young 
monk chant a number of Pali stanzas, composed by 
the learned Sumangala himself, in honour of this same 
woman. In these pandals the official record was read 
in English, Sinhalese, or Tamil, by the leaders of the 
•classes represented. Sir Arthur Gordon also read the 
Eecord through, and then proclaiojed in Her Majesty's 
name that the lands sold for default of payment of 
commutation rates, since the introduction of the 
Grain Commutation Ordinance into any province, 
which shall remain in the hands of the Crown, should 
be restored to their former possessors. He also an- 
nounced that the following classes of prisoners — 173 
in number — had been released on that day as an 
example of Her Majesty's mercy and clemency: — 
(Ist) all prisoners in prison for debt due to the Crown ; 
(2nd) all women not undergoing imprisonment for 
very serious offences; (3rd) all prisoners whose sen- 
tences of imprisonment were shortly to expire. 

Prom the official record of British progress in fifty 
jears, prepared by the Governor, we quote the few 
items referring to Ceylon : — 

In 1838 the Legislative Council of the Colony, created but not com- 
pleted in 1833, received its full complement of members. 

In 1844 the last remains of Slavery were whoUy abolished. 

In 1848 a slight insurrectionary movement took place in a part of the 
Kandyan districts, which is only worthy of mention in order to contrast 
" th ■ ■ •■ 



it with the loyalty of all classes ten years later, on which the Governor 
of Ceylon was able safely to relv, when in 1857 he sent all the availab 
troops in this Island to assist in tne suppression of the Indian Mutiny. 




ne 

Village 

enforcement of Irrigation Works. 



Jubilee Celebration. 177 

In the same year the first sod was cut of the first Railway in Ceylon. 

In 1868 Ceylon was united with India by the Electric Telegraph. 

In 1865 the Municipalities of Colombo and Kandy were estobushed. 

In 1868 the general scheme of Public Education now in force was 
adopted by the Legislature. 

In 1870 legislatiye measures enabling the tenants of Temple Lands to 
commute their services were adopted, and in the same year the Ceylon 
Medical School was estabhshed. 

In 1871 the powers of Village Coimcils were largely extended, and 
Village Tribunals instituted. 

In 1875 the first stone of the Colombo Breakwater was laid by His 
Boyal Highness the Prince of Wales. 

La 1881 an Ordinance, which however did not come fully into effect 
until 1886, was passed, withdrawing pecuniary aid, saving in the case of 
vested life-interests, from all Ecclesu^cal Bodies. 

In 1883 a Code of Criminal Law and Procedure was passed, which 
came into operation at the beginning of 1885. 

In 1885 Currency Notes were first issued by the Government. 

In 1886 the Colombo Breakwater was completed. 

The Population of Ceylon, which in 1837 was estimated at 1,243,066, 
and on the first census taken in 1871 was found to be 2,405,287, now 
amounts to about 3,000,000. 

The Revenue, which in 1837 was £371,993, amounted in 1867 to 
£969,936, and in 1886 to R12,682,549. 

The number of miles of Main Boads open in 1837 was about 450 ; in 
1887 it was 3,343. 

The number of Estates in the hands of European Settlers in 1837 
probably did not exceed 50 ; in 1887 it was over 1,600. The development 
of Agricultural Industry which these figures denote is, in itself, the most 
remarkable feature in the History of Ceylon during Her Majesty's reign. 
It is a development which has changed the physical appearance of the 
country, and profoundly modified its social condition, and which is due 
to the energy and perseverance of men who have shown that they can 
bear adversity with fortitude as they sustained prosperity with credit. 

The Boyal Standard was then hoisted, and a royal 
salute of fifty guns was fired. Next the Volunteer 
Band, led by Mr. Liischwitz, played " The National 
Anthem," while the children, led by the Eev. S. Coles^ 
O.M.S., sang the same. 

Processions closed the afternoon's proceedings, and 
effective displays of fireworks, with less effective illu- 
minations, entertained a large concourse till midnight. 

The chief permanent Memorial of the Jubilee is to 
be the Ceylon "Victoria Home for Incurables," 

Nowhere in the British Empire are there more loyal 
or contented subjects of her Most Gracious Majesty 
than in "Lanka," "the pearl-drop on the brow of 
India." 

13 



Ceylon in the Jtibilee Vear. 




APPENDICES. 



APPENDIX I. 



SHOOTING TEIPS IN CEYLON.* 

GOOD CENTBES FOB SFOBT, AND HOW TO BSACH THEM FBOM COLOMBO. 

No. 1. — The Pabk Country and Batticaloa Tanks : — 
Oame : elephants, deer, cheetahs, bears, pigs, teal, snipe, 
peafowl, &c,, &c. To Nanuoya by rail ; to BaduUa, hired 
carriage, 40 miles ; to Bibile, hired carriage, 87 miles ; to 
Nilgala, good bridle road, 15 miles. This is a good centre 
for the Park country. To Ambari Tank, 81 miles. 

[Excellent country for all the above game, Erikamam, 
Devilane, and other large tanks in the vicinity.] 

No. 2. — Thk Horton Plains : — Game : elk, deer, ele- 
phants, spur fowl, &c., &c. To Nanuoya by rail; to the 
Horton Plains, turning off at Blackpool 2 miles from the 
Nanuoya station on the road to Nuwara Eliya, 18 miles. 

No. 8. — Tbincosialeb Distbiot : — Game : elephants, 
bears, cheetahs, deer, teal, snipe, &c., &c. To Trincoma- 
lee, by steamer, or by road through Eandy and Matale, 
rail to Matale, thence by road to Trincomalee, 97 miles. 
Trincomalee to Eottiar by boat, Eottiar to Toppur (Allai- 
Tank^, 7 miles. Good centre for sport of all sorts. Kan- 
thalai Tank, 24 miles from Trincomalee on Eandy road, 
good centre for sport. 

No. 4. — PuTTALAM DISTRICT : — Gume : elephants, bears, 
cheetahs, deer, partridge, &c., &c. To Puttalam by canal 
or road, 84 miles. Puttalam to Pomparipo by lake or 

* The best available book on Sport is still Sir Samuel Baker's 
*' Hifle and Hound in Ceylon,'* though published nearly thirty years 
ago : a new edition was published a few years ago. 



180 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

road, 25 miles. Good centre for sport. Pomparipo to^ 
Marichikaddi, 18 miles bridle road. Excellent country 
for game of all sorts. 

No. 5. — Hambantota District: — To Kalutara by rail;, 
eoach to Galle and Matara ; thence a hired trap to Ham- 
bantota. By steamer to Galle and Hambantota and cart 
to YM. 

No. 6. — MiNERY AND PoLONARuwA : — To Matale by rail. 
Matale to Habaranne byroad, 44 miles, good carriage road. 
Habaranne to Minnery, bridle road, 15 miles; Minnery 
to Topari (Polonnaruwa) 12 miles. 



THE ELEPHANT KKAAL OF 1882. 

A DESCRIPTION OF THE ELEPHANT KRAAL HELD AT LABUGAMA (CEYLON)' 
FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT OF THE PRINCES ALBERT VICTOR AND GEORGE 
OF WALES IN 1882. 

(From an account by Mr. J. Ferguson in the Ceylon Observer), 

AT THE KEAAL. 
Kbaaltowk, Monday Evening, January 80, 1882. 

ABBIVAL OF THE PBINCES. 

The Princes arrived at the kraal at 5 p.m. Prince 
Oeorge was mounted on a spirited steed and cleared the 
stream which runs between the official and unofficial 
portions of Kraaltown in magnificent style, showing that 
he knows how to ride. Large crowds of planters and 
others cheered him vociferously. Prince Albert Victor 
arrived on foot, walking with his Excellency the Governor 
alongside of Lady Longden, who was carried in a chair. 
There are two herds of elephants within a mile of the 
kraal, seven in one herd and fifteen in the other. A 
successful drive is expected early to-morrow morning. 

Tuesday Forenoon, January 81, 1882. 

THE elephants UNDISPOSED TO CABBY OUT THE OFFICIAL 

PBOOBAMME. 

The little programme sketched out by the Government 
Agent, and which the energetic Dawson hoped to put into 
execution, ran somewhat as follows : — The driving from 



An Elephant Kraal. 181 

i)li6 outer into the inner beat to commence last night, to 
'be followed this morning by the drive into the kraal, 
which, it was hoped, would be effected before noon; the 
noosing and tying-up to be at once begun and continued 
on Wednesday. This would have enabled the princes to 
see all the operations connected with a kraal and to start 
back so as to reach Colombo in good time on Wednesday. 
But, so far, we have only an illustration of the well- 
born aphorism that — 

" The best-laid plans of mice and men 
Gang aft agley ; '* 

and we all know how often, especially in the case of 
elephants, are the plans of men at fault An old chief 
last evening gave me the opinion, based on his experience 
of a good many kraals, that while a herd of elephants 
were difficult to compass and drive from their native 
jungle in the £rst instance, once start them and get the 
beat fairly established, and by the time they come within 
driving ^stance of the kraal they are all fairly cowed 
and very easy of management. No doubt comparatively 
this is the case ; but in the history of kraals we have too 
many instances of successful charges and escapes to feel 
that the final drive is such an easy matter as the old chief 
would have us believe. Last night's experience is no 
exception. The herd that it was proposed first to capture, 
after being driven into the inner beat, broke through into 
the wider range, and the evening's labour went for nothing. 
No doubt the wet evening — ^rain extinguishing fire and 
torches — had a good deal to do with the breach effected. 
Of nothing is the elephant so much afraid as of fire, and 
with nothing will a Kandyan approach a wild elephant so 
readily. You will remember Major Skinner's experience 
on the Anurddhapura road as an illustration. How he 
found the road to his camp wilfully, if not deliberately 
(and of malice aforethought), blocked up one evening by 
a herd of elephants which had been prowling in the neigh- 
bourhood ; how all the efforts of himself and his men to 
clear the road of the intruders proved unavailing — the 
leader, an old tusker, charging furiously when any attempt 
was made at dislodgment ; and how this went on for some 
hours until finally a Kandyan arrived with a huge torcfh, 
with which he marched right up to the tusker, who stood 



182 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

bis ground until the fire almost touched his trunk, and 
then turned tail and fled with all his belongings. In the- 
bands of a man of Mr. Saunders's nerve, no doubt an 
umbrella alternately opened and shut would prove a» 
effectual as a torch, and very probably the Government 
Agent found occasion to use it last night, for he and Mr. 
Dawson are reported to have spent most of the night witb 
the beaters. 

Very early astir this morning, probably the first fron^ 
the official encampment, was Captain Foot (of H.M.S. 
Ruby), and a long walk round the kraal and on along the 
line of beaters failed to afford a sight of waving forest 
tree-tops, or the sound of crashing through '^batali " (small, 
bambu), much less the sight of an elephant. The hope 
now is that one herd maybe driven in this afternoon, but 
there are doubts about it, and the headmen are more than 
usually susceptible to the presence of strangers, insisting 
that their beaters should not be visited, and that no bugle 
should be sounded for the benefit of ** Kraaltown " until 
the barrier-gate shall be closed and the herd secured. 
There is, as usual, too, some little jealousy among the 
chiefs, the one insisting on his herd being first disposed 
of and by no means mingled with the others. 

Meantime the princes are enjoying themselves under 
** the merrie greenwood." Their quarters have been most' 
delightfully chosen — for situation beautiful exceedingly — 
and much care and taste have been displayed in fitting 
them up. A ** crow's-nest" for four has been established, 
at a good point for a sight of the drive-in, while the prin- 
cipal grand stand is, as usual, erected partly inside the' 
kraal to secure a good sight of the final and really 
interesting operations. 

Tuesday Evening. 

the elephants still obstinate — a visit to the beaters* ' 
lines — a false alabm — the chief ekneligoda. 

This has been a day of disappointment for all concerned.. 
The drive-in, which was expected to take place last night 
was considered certain for this morning, and in hurrying 
up from a distance of ten miles (where I had taken up my 
quarters last night) I feared the risk of missing an exciting 
portion of the proceedings, but was consoled to find 
everybody still waiting for the elephants. The afternoon^ 



An Elephant Kraal. 188 

was now considered certain for the drive, and in prepara- 
tion thousands of natives wended their way kraalwards, 
from which, however, they were kept off at respectable 
distance. 

I started off to find the onter line of beaters, and at. 
abont two miles from Kraaltown I came npon their small 
jungle huts, or rather nests and camp-fires. Very pic- 
turesque was the scene and wonderful the interest of the 
people in their work, from the old grey-headed Eandyan 
sire with his flowing white beard, who had probably 
passed through more kraals than he could recall, to the 
young stripling by his side who was on the ** corral'* beat 
for the first time. From the far-distant jungle came the 
signal of their chief, Ekneligoda, or his henchman, and 
immediately the cry was taken up, 

** Hari — hari — ^hari — haii, 
Hari — ^hari — ^ho-ho ! " 

winding up with a prolonged cheer. Passing from the 
bridle-road, the outer cordon line led through the small 
bambu jungle up hill and down dale ; camp-fires, huts, and 
beaters with their long forks were passed, or here and 
there an old musket, and again at regular intervals a 
crow*8-nest with an agile, keen-eyed watchman swung up 
in a tree. Suddenly a wild '* hcdloo 1 " is raised by the 
Sinhalese on the river bank ; there is crashing of jungle, 
firing of guns, and flinging of stones; two or three 
indefatigable appuhdmis literally throw themselves into 
the stream across which the cordon line now runs, to pick 
up rocks and fling them into the jungle. The elephants 
are surely coming, and right down upon us in the river, is 
the first thought. Three beaters at our side look out for 
trees, and the thought of shelter becomes a leading con- 
sideration. Suddenly the assistant agent, Mr. Dawson, 
accompanied by the indefatigable Captain Foot and a few 
other officers, break from the cordon line into the river- 
bed. Their presence has a wonderful effect ; the beaters 
redouble their fririous attack on the supposed advancing 
*< aliyas," shouts and yells, shots and shells in the form of 
pieces of rock, crashing and trampling, form a proper 
accompaniment, and it seems more than ever needful to 
look out for danger. As a Colombo wallah I could not 
help thinking discretion the better part of valour, and my 
friends looked, if they did not speak it — 



184 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

*' He who ascends into a tree 
May next day climb again with me ; 
But he by elephant that's gored 
May see at once that he is floor'd.'* 

But, before we moved a step, the clamour and shindy 
subsided as suddenly as it was commenced, and it did not 
require the ** knowing" look of a friend up to **the ways 
that are dark " of the beater folk to see that all was got 
up as a ** plant'* (excuse slang) in honour of the visitors, 
to afford them a little sensation for their jungle trip. 
*• The elephants are upon you," they said, in fact, in order 
to see how we should stand the test or show a clean pair 
of heels. But fortunately we stood it all, while we followed 
on in search of the elephants. 

I was anxious to see the old chief, Ekneligoda, who at 
the head of 500 men directed this drive of fifteen ele- 
phants — his people having been out for nearly a month, 
while he has been half that period living and lodging as 
best he can in the jungle. ** Here he comes," cries my 
companion, who knows the old man well : a little, dark, 
skinny old man, bearded like the wandura, with an 
ordinary comboy which he is holding up as he walks bare- 
foot through jungle and water — the inevitable dilapidated 
billy-cock hat setting off a figure which a stranger would 
at once say belonged to a poor old Kandyan of no conse- 
quence. But a glance at his face revealed power and 
authority, set off by a keen eye and aquiline nose — a man 
of few words, yet his English is good. We met him 
later on coming back from one of his beats, when he 
frankly assured us he did not think we could see the ele- 
phants, penetrate and push on as we might. He com- 
plained, not loudly, but expressively, of the difficult task 
set to him: more troublesome elephants had probably 
never come under his care. 

Wednesday Evening, Feb. 1st, 1882. 

PARTIAL SUCCESS : SEVEN ELEPHANTS DRIVEN IN, BUT THE 
ATTEMPT TO NOOSE THEM UNSUCCESSFUL — ONE SHOT, AND 

THE TAIL PRESENTED TO PRINCE ALBERT VICTOR A 

BEATER KILLED AND OTHERS WOUNDED DEPARTURE OP 

THE GOVERNOR AND THE PRINCES. 

Ekneligoda has his headquarters on the north side of 
the Peak in the Yatiyantota district, as his relative and 



. An Elephant Kraal. 185 

superior, Iddamalgoda, holds sway over the richer and 
more popular south. He is a man of few words, but 
when I met him the second time in the bed of the expan- 
sive rocky ela, which feeds the Maha-oya, the chief, who 
looked disconcerted after his interview with his civilian 
superior, threw out his hands in the expressive oriental 
fashion and deprecated this English plan of fighting 
against time and nature, hurrying up the elephants, nolens 
nolens, whether inclined to go on or not. •* Now," said 
the chief, "the Sinhalese way is to wait on the elephants; 
■don't allow them to go back ; wait until they go, or only 
at proper times help them to go forward.'* In the light 
of last night's and to-day's experiences, there is much 
ivisdom in the old chiefs remark. 

Tuesday passed, and no elephants approached, but the 
beaters had begun to work in earnest, the position of the 
herd had been noted by the waving of the jungle, and the 
-chief was very sanguine of passing into the kraal valley 
and probably driving his herd in during the night. 
With this anticipation the princely and viceregal party, 
as well as Kraaltown, had to be content for Tuesday 
evening. 

The princes were for part of this day entertained with 
ihe performances of the tame elephants, and they had 
several walks to the ** crow's-nest " in front of the kraal. 

Wednesday's Experiences. 

Day broke, and in the grey morning mist, from 5 to 7 
^a.m. (and a few hours afterwards), the denizens of Kraal- 
town might be seen climbing the hillside, and passing on 
to the kraal entrance in the hope of all being ready for 
l)usiness at last, but ** No elephants ; not likely to be any 
kraal," was all that one could learn. Later on, however, 
-came better news, and we awaited patiently for hours the 
approach of elephants which, ju^ing by the nearness 
and loudness of the cries of the beaters, might be ex- 
pected at any moment, from 9 a.m. onwards, to burst 
from their final fastness along the drive into the kraal. 

Wednesday Night. 

capture of iddamalgoda's heed of elephants. 

About breakfast-time came the news that i^e two herds 
of from seventeen to twenty elephants were to be kraaled 



186 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

BunnltaneoiiBl;. This vas received as a welcome relief 
by the veary hystandets. Very patiently, though with 
eager expectation, did ve all wait for the sadden raetliiiff 
of the jungle aod the bnrst inwards, which would afford 
oonlar demonstration of a herd being kraaled. Bnt boor 
after horn: sped away, and, though nnmerons were th& 
alarma, no approach to the entrance followed. It was a. 
case of 

' ' How often wa Prince Bnpert kill'd, 
And Iwnvely won the day, — 
The wicked CnTSlieis do read 
The clean ci 



■^;>^^i" 






At one time the tame elephants were ordered down into 
the jungle to charge the wild herd apwarde if posBible, 
but the attempt failed : the work was one in which the 
tame cues had no practice, and the " cow " in the herd, 
already nearly driven desperate abont her calf, threatened 
to nndo all the labour of many weeks, if any weak point 
were left exposed. Fiercely, and again and again, did this 
gallant brute and faithful mother charge the beaters ; she 
refused to be driven back, and after injuring, directly or 
indirectly, several of the heaters, she at last killed her 
man, and it was resolved she mast perish. Mr. James 
Mnnro was requested to punish the offender, not by 



An Elephant Kraal. 187 

killing but by wounding her, which he did at forty paces 
by a shot in the forehead. This laid the cow prostrate 
for from five to ten minutes, during which blood poured 
out of the wound in a torrent, forming quite a pool ; but 
after this interval the animal rose, much to the delight of 
its distracted calf, and trotted after the herd, thoroughly 
cured of further designs on the beaters, and in a few 
minutes more — unfortunately in the absence of the crow's- 
nest party at luncheon — the whole herd, four large and 
three small, dashed along the entrance drive into the 
kraal, trampling down the bambu jungle and passing at 
lightning speed and with the sound of rumbling thunder 
into the kraal. 

** Caught at last ! " was the cry, and the grand stand 
was speedily occupied, while the order went forth to old 
Iddamalgoda, who now appeared on the scene, that an 
attempt should at once be made to move and tie up ono 
of the herd. 

But, alas, the princes were timed to leave at 1.80 ; they 
lingered on till about 8 p.m., and so secured a passing 
sight of the herd in the kraal and were presented with, 
the tail of the elephant shot. Then Prince Albert Victor,. 
His Excellency the Governor, Lady Longden, Sir Edwin 
Johnson, Lieut Adair, and Captain Hayne, A.D.C., 
started for Colombo ; while Prince George, with his tutor, 
the Bev. J. Dalton, Captains Lord Charles Scott, Durrant,. 
and Foot — as well as Admiral Gore-Jones — remained 
some hours longer in the hope of witnessing a noosing 
and tying up. Beaters were already hard at work with 
catties, and very soon two or three of the tame elephants 
lent their effective aid, butting down gently but effectually 
trees of no mean magnitude : everything in the shape of 
light jungle speedily disappeared from around the royal 
stand. The enormous government ** tusker,'* fully roped 
and equipped for the noosing and tying business, now 
moved down in stately measure among the spectators to 
the eastern side of the kraal, where, at the word of 
command, he lightly and readily slipped aside the top 
beam and dropped the one end from his trunk to the 
ground. He crossed the lower beam, still over four feet 
high, without difficulty, and proceeded into the jungle. 
I passed on to the remoter end of the kraal, where a 
continuous trumpeting, varied by stentorian but painful 



188 Ceylon in the JMlee Year. 

<5rie8 of the bereaved baby-elephant, indicated the pre- 
sence of the herd hidden in the dense bambu jungle. 
Nothing could be seen of them here, however — only the 
occasional waving of the bambus. Turning back, I found 
that the government tusker had got rid of his keeper 
inside the kraal for some reason, and was vainly trying by 
Mmself to slip back the upper beam again iu order to get 
out of the kraal! Fortunately for the thousands of 
natives and some Europeans too (who could not well 
etampede through the close jungle) the beam had been 
firmly secured, and very soon the keeper once more 
resumed his work and authority, and the tusker went to 
work, although, apparently, he was not to be depended on 
€0 much as the remaining tuskers' trio. After a good 
Tiew of this end of the kraal from Mr. Charles de Soysa*s 
«tand, I went on to the grand stand, inside the kraal, 
where Prince George and party were waiting for the 
•exhibition which never came off. Although two or three 
•encounters took place, and although a band of volunteer 
European parties undertook to drive from the lower end 
of the kraal, no favourable opportunity for noosing could 
be obtained, and the prince had to be contented with the 
several ineffectual attempts made. 

The fact is that the attempt to noose on the same evening 
as the capture is unprecedented, and the civil officers 
scarcely expected success. The usual and proper course 
is to allow a night to intervene, during which the captives 
trample down all the ** batali " and other jungle stuff, ex- 
haust themselves in examining their prison, and finally lie 
•down in whatever puddle may remain in the hollows. 
I^oosing and tying can then proceed in a business-like way. 
Clearly, neither chief nor retainers could feel much enthu- 
siasm in the after-proceedings of this afternoon. That the 
tame elephants and keepers did their duty well is vouched 
for by the experience of a planting friend who, occupying 
s. prominent position in a high tree inside the western side 
of the kraal, witnessed a charge of three tame elephants 
on to the quartette of big ones in the herd, which fairly 
astonished him. The trio were arranged in line, facing 
the position in the bambu, where the herd gave evidence 
of their presence, and all at once in regular and most 
rapid motion, at the word of command, they charged, 
butting the herd fairly over or on before them. So rapid 



An Elephant Kraal, 18& 

and regular was the ran, that the three seemed as one, and 
to run like a racehorse. 

As a finish to my day's work, I paid a visit to the dead 
elephant, which lay in the bambu jungle not far from the 
western entrance. The fatal shots on the forehead were 
examined, as well as one in the ear ; the ears and feet a& 
trophies or talismans had already been either cut off or 
hacked about. We were a party of twenty or thirty, in- 
cluding natives, around the prostrate animal, when sud- 
denly a crash through the jungle near at hand was followed 
by the cry of ** Here comes the herd I '* and, sure enough, 
the wild elephants, closely followed by two of the tame 
ones, appeared to be making directly for us. There wa& 
screaming and shouting enough in good earnest, and 
although the only risk lay in a hurried stampede in one 
direction, the pursuers being behind, clearly discretion was 
the better part of valour, and a rush was made for the 
barrier. 

Thursday Evening, February 2nd, 1882. 

A HABD day's WOKK, RESULTING FINALLY IN THE CAPTURE OF 
TWELVE ELEPHANTS, INCLUDING A SPLENDm TUSKER. 

We were met at an early hour by an official intimation 
— ^probably written the night before — to the effect that the 
public were requested not to approach the stockade and 
kraal, as Ekneligoda's herd was within easy distance, and 
the attempt was to be made to open the barrier gate, drive 
them in and kraal all together. This was a disappoint- 
ment, because it added to the risk of there being no noos- 
ing at all this day ; but before we had fully realized the 
new ** situation " created by the official ** proclamation,"^ 
came the authentic news, meeting us on the road up to the 
kraal, that the whole of the six elephants kraaled the 
night before had escaped during the night, and that the 
kraal was vacant ! 

This proved to be the fact, and the explanations rendered 
were most varied. One statement was that part of Ekne- 
ligoda's herd had broken in during the night, and the 
palisade being knocked down, all escaped scot-£ree again ; 
another account made it appear that the gate must have 
been opened preparatory to the farther kraaling, and so in 
being too greedy, crying '' more, more,'' those already held 



190 Ceylon in the JiMlee Year. 

were lost. The ofiScial report is that a ''tusker" &om 
Ekneligoda*s herd — and it is supposed to be the same 
*' tusker " as visited the kraal the night before — ^broke in 
again so effectually as to release his sisters and brethren, 
old and young, in distress. But where were the watchmen 
planted all round the kraal the night before with wands 
and spears immediately alongside the barricade ? Well, 
i)here can be no doubt they were grievously to blame, and 
as evidence that they have not escaped punishment I may 
mention that the Government Agent visited them at an 
early hour this morning to give them ** a bit of his mind," 
winding up, I beheve, with a smash of ** crockery *' (!) in- 
including chatties — a great deprivation for Sinhalese 
^* jungle- wallahs." 

But, in defence of these poor fellows, let me say that 
their story has it that they were beset by wild elephants 
prowling round the kraal from the outside, and so, between 
two fires, they could not give their attention to their 
charge as they would have Hked. There are further ex- 
planations however, namely, that their chief Iddamalgoda 
had to listen to some sharp words the night before on 
account of the slowness of his people to effect a noosing, 
the threat finally being that the Government would not 
allow them to have a single elephant from the herd, since 
they allowed Prince George to leave without tying up one. 
The old chief said nothing, merely shrugging his shoulders ; 
but it is quite conceivable that his people cared little about 
keeping strict watch and ward over the herd that was to 
be taken from them. Another reason for discouragement 
was the shooting of the big ** cow " elephant : the beaters 
did not like it a bit : — '* Here we have been driving in the 
jungle for weeks, and after we have brought this elephant 
eighty miles or so to within as many feet of the gate of the 
kraal, you go and shoot it ! " This is certainly not the native 
plan, and it is all attributable to the terrible haste made in 
the present proceedings in order *' to catch the princes." 
Another six hours must undoubtedly have brought in the 
mother as well as calf in safety. 

From an early hour Mr. Templer (who had so steadily 
accompanied Iddamalgoda's herd to the kraal) was out 
with Ekneligoda and the larger herd, now coming rapidly 
forward. Whether this chiefs circle of beaters had inter- 
cepted and added to their herd the six escaped elephants 



An Elephant KraaL 



191 



IS a matter of doubt ; but they certainly brought on as 
many as twelve elephants of their own, and beating up 
from early morning, the most perfect stillness being main- 
tained in and around the stockade — due very much to the 
great number of departures — shortly after noon the herd 
was reported well on in the kraal drive,"^ and at one o'clock 
Mr. Saunders's report was : "Drive-in probable in a quarter 
•of an hour." From that time on to five o'clock, most try- 
ing, vexatious, disappointing, and yet most exciting was 
i)he experience. I question if ever before in the history 
of kraals there has been so strange and mixed an experi- 
•ence. 

The following sketch will give an accurate idea of the 



'^♦/i^. 



rrocKAom 




Si 

2 



way in which Ekneligoda's herd had to approach the 
kraaL There is a ridge and valley behind the kraal 
valley. 

The herd, after coming down the drive, had rounded the 
hill and faced the kraal about 1 p.m., as I have said. 
The cries of the beaters came steadUy onwards so far, and 

* The drive for a couple of miles ronnd the range, down the gorge 
imd on towards the kraal till the stockade was reached, was most 
finely carried on : the cries of the beaters ever came nearer and nearer; 
but when the elephants sighted and scented the stockade they stopped 
short at once. 



^1 



192 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

progress, though a good deal slower, was made for an hour 
more. Most exciting was the scene then ; the proximity 
of the elephants was evident, the tree-tops waved, th& 
bambus cracked, and every now and then uplifted trunks 
rose over the bambus, and a rumbling Of trumpeting — the 
simmering of baffled rage — ^swelled the excitement of the 
few hidden and silent onlookers, as well as that of th& 
beaters. Between 2 and 8 p.m. the drive-in became so 
certain and imminent that Ekneligoda and his immediate 
bodyguard or attendants (five stalwart swarthy fellows); 
left ''the beat '' to see if all was right at the Government 
Agent's comer, whence the entrance could be commanded. 
This was below the princes* " crow's nest," to-day, alas I 
deserted. [I wish I had time to give you a proper idea of 
Ekneligoda, as he came up the path of watchers outside 
the drive, billycock hat and common cloth as usual, closely 
followed, however, by his umbrella-bearer in gorgeous cos- 
tume of flowered comboy, big comb, &c. Evidently the^ 
Sinhalese chieftain when on the '' corral " path likes to 
look Uke his work and to leave all outward show to his 
servants.] Sure enough, Ekneligoda had not been long at 
our end, when the elephants rushed as if for the entrance ; 
but they stopped short, irresolute ; then, getting into the 
open, some of them made a dash at the palisades of the^ 
drive facing us, and immediately we all — a dozen Euro- 
peans, backing the watchers led by Ekneligoda — shouted 
and screamed and struck trees and fences to our hearts' 
content. This drove them in a mob on the other side, 
where, at the palisade as well as far up the hillside were a 
number of planters, besides the usual stockade guard. 
They soon made it plain to the herd they could not break 
through there ; and then was witnessed a sight probably 
never before paralleled — seven or eight goodly-sized 
elephants standing in a semicircle together, heads to the 
centre, immediately in front of the entrance to the kraal, 
and yet not making the slightest attempt to enter ! The 
rest«of the herd farther up the drive kept the beaters back 
by charging now and then ; * but evidently there was now 

* About 1.30 the tusker made a full charge ; there were some 
Tisitors at the time with the beaters ; later on, when a great many 
European volunteers had joined, a regular charge of the herd took 
place, and three elephants escaped up a ridge along the centre of 
the drive, being seen from the stockade to pass through the beaters. 
Altogether four charges were made on the volunteers. 



An Elephant KraaL 198 

an obstacle in the way, or sach demoralization as made it 
most uncertain what to expect of the elephants. The most 
likely explanation became evident with the recollection of 
the ''dead elephant/' shot the night before inside the en- 
trance, and the track of blood which no doabt ran along 
from the barrier. On smell elephants chiefly depend to warn 
them of danger. The scent of danger ahead was only too 
apparent. '' Better perish where we are " seemed the 
thought of the seven companions in danger, as they stood 
rubbing each other sympathetically, than pass that truly 
bloody gateway and be shot behind it. 

Baffled again and again, and worn out by their exer- 
tions, it became clear that Ekneligoda's men wanted help. 
This had been suggested to the chief already once or twice, 
and Mr. 0. S. Agar, who had been summoned at an early 
hour by Mr. Dawson to aid with his trusty rifle, had been 
«ager for some time to join the drive, and by discharging 
blank shot to inspire the beaters to urge the drive on.* 
Mr. W. S. Murray at last conveyed the pressing request 
to Ekneligoda (who had again rejoined his people) for 
Mr. Agar and twenty or thirty European volunteers to 
join the ring, and, after an interval, it was granted on 
condition that no shot should on any account be flred at 
the elephants. 

Mr. Agar, rifle in hand, quickly followed Mr. Murray to 
the beat in the valley, and, Mr. Saunders sending the call 
round, I speedily saw pass on from our side Messrs. 
Thring, Talbot, and G. B. White, the admiral's flag- 
lieutenant (the admiral had all day attended closely on 
the proceedings with imperturbable good humour and 
encouragement), and three or four more whom, in their 
hasty descent through the scrub, I did not recognize. A 
still larger body, chiefly planters, passed into the drive 
round the opposite side of the kraal. Most unfortunately, 
the volunteers had barely reached the circle of advance 
when the rain, which had been threatening for some time, 
began to descend in torrents : black and hopeless rolled 
the clouds over the devoted valley and the apparently ill- 
fated drive ; the thunder boomed and the rain poured, and 

* Mr. A. J. Campbell had previoasly pressed to be allowed to lead 
twenty-five Europeans and fifty native beaters, guaranteeing success 
with the drive, but, Ekneligoda then protesting, this was considered 
unadvisable. 

14 



194 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

it seemed as if " baii-haii-hooi-ooi " was at an end. The 
cry was raised again and again, but was positiTely drowned 
in the greater noise of the elements. From many points 
of Tiew this ill-timed rain seemed to doom the whole 
enterprise. It gave the thirsty elephants refreshment, 
a breathing fcpace, and fresh courage ; night was coming 
on ; the driTers conld not stand their gronnd so doee 
np to the herd all night ; their camp-fires mnst proTe a 
fiulnre ; — and hcpe had sunk to zero t The dead elephant 
had, apparently, Eaved a score of liTing companions frcm 
being kraakd. 

I had taken refnge from the rain in a watcher's hnt ; 
bat abont 4.d0, finding the rain soaking throngh, and no 
appearance of a clearing np, hopeless of a kraal, and 
anxions to get on ten mQes homewards after my boxes, 
which had, alas, gone on before me, I determined to start 
off. I made for Kraaltown in a woefol condition; the 
pathways were being swept by torrents, the road down 
the bill at some comers was a perfect rapid, and at its foot 
the ** ela " in front of Kraaltown, which had hitherto been 
crcssed at a low ebb, was becoming an impassable river. 
I arriTcd early enough, however, to be carried over with 
the help of two coolies and a Sinhalese servant, who 
rushed to our assistance when in a hole near the other 
side. I found Kraaltown pretty well deserted ; and, with 
boxes gone, no '* change " was available, though I was 
drenched to the skin. Eventually, however, I secured 
sufficient for a change by borrowing in four different 
quarters ! I merely give these trivial personal details to 
show what kind of an evening had come on, and what the 
experience of many others was ; and still more what was 
the state of the men at the post of honour and of danger 
in the jungle drive. 

About six o'clock grand tidings came down with men 
who, drenched to the skin already, thought little of wading 
or swimming the river. Gtithering up the reports of half 
a dozen of the eye-witnesses or partakers in the final 
charges and drives, I will endeavour hastily to present a 
consecutive trustworthy account. For the elephants now„ 
it was clearly a case of 

Officers to the right of them, 
Planters on left of them, 
Beaters behind them, 
While all the herd \?ondered, — 



An Elephant Kraal. 195 

or rather felt a much less pleasant sensation. Messrs. 
Agar, Thring, Talbot, and their party lost little time, rain 
or no rain, in beating to quarters : they urged the drive in 
again and again ; shot succeeded shot ; *' hari-hari '* be- 
came the rule; and the drive was one scene of excitement. 
Several minor charges to the line took place ; but the 
rain and the advent of the Europeans sent the beaters to 
huddle under trees and clear out. It became evident that 
the Europeans could not work without a base line being 
cut out of the jungle, and the natives were brought back 
to cut down a semicircular path behind the elephants. 
Torches were also prepared, weapons improvised, and all 
made ready to force the herd on. 

Mr. Saunders now appears to have, as a last effort, 
descended into the beat, and, while his volunteers were 
using every exertion to drive in, he climbed up a tree to 
catch the exact situation. I am guessing at this intention 
from what followed. On the stockade near the drive, at 
the angle joining the kraal, sat four planters watching the 
struggle, who had not yet joined in it. Mr. Saunders 
called on them to lend a hand, and they immediately 
passed in, led by Mr. Sandison. Arrived at the beat, and 
immediately behind the herd, Mr. Sandison, who carried 
a short spear, looking round for a torch, the most trust- 
worthy of all weapons of defence in dealing with wild 
elephants, spied Mr. Unwin alongside with one, and 
arranged in a word that they should go on, shoulder to 
shoulder, together. But Mr. Sandison's former com- 
panions, not understanding the arrangement, pressed on 
between. Several others from the beating line followed. 
Sandison advanced right up to the elephant, and with 
a prod sent it — a huge mother with a httle calf — aright on 
the herd with a rush ! Some of the main body of elephants 
thus charged sprang over the ravine towards the entrance, 
pressed on by Messrs. Wighton, Thring, Talbot, and others. 
Not so the wild mother and her calf, the tusker, and two 
or three more : they only rushed forward to wheel round 
and charge fairly back into the centre of the Europeans, 
who, much in advance of the natives, were left without 
any support. The rank broke, and the volunteers tried, 
but only tried, to get out of the way in all directions ; for 
there was no room, and a bambu ** batali " jungle is not 
the place to escape through. Down went the men as if 



196 Ceylon in tlie Jubilee Year. 

shot ; about twenty were in the scrimmage, and more or 
less " down " — very " down in their luck," it must be 
confessed, did a good many consider themselves to be. 
The ** Laurd of Logie,** who had done yeoman service all 
along, went down as if felled, and this was by far the 
narrowest escape, I learn from the others, for the calf fairly 
vaulted over his prostrate form ! 

Intercepted by the native beaters farther out, it is said 
that the infuriated female and her calf once again returned 
in a rush through the adjoining ravine up to the entrance ; 
but it is very doubtful if she went in. 

A few minutes before the gate was closed — on, certainly, 
a dozen elephants — a part of the barrier near the princes' 
crow's-nest was the object of a fierce charge by a huge 
brute — ^perhaps the ** tusker " which Mr. R. H. Morgan, 
from one of the stands, rightly declared he saw inside. 
For a hundred yards the barrier shook as if it were going 
to fall, and the charger got his forefeet through ; but two 
or three Europeans, led by Mr. EL Whitham, rushed to the 
spot and drove him back. 

Feiday Moening, February 8rd, 1882. 

COMPENSATION FOR ALL THE DELAY — EXCITING DAY IN THE 

KRAAL NOOSING AND TYING SIX OUT OP TWELVE 

ELEPHANTS NOOSED— GREAT SPORT. 

Yesterday morning, while waiting for the early drive we 
then expected, we spent some time with the four tame 
elephants belonging to Mr. Charles de Soysa, and by him, 
with commendable public spirit, ordered to the kraal in 
case their services should be required. One huge tusker, 
** Siriwala," is supposed to be over eighty years of age, 
and therefore too old to be of much service in " noosing " 
and " tying up " wild elephants. But he will be useful in 
beating up and blocking the way of retreat, since his stately 
presence is of itself sufficient to inspire a wholesome terror 
in the minds of his comparatively puny compeers, and as 
elephants have been described as ''half-reasoning animals," 
they will no doubt keep at a safe distance from Siriwala's 
tusks. Mach less attractive, though far more useful to 
his owner, is the small and tuskless •* Rajah," for which 
Mr. de Soysa paid double the price of old Siriwala. 
Bajah cost JSIOD. He goes through a number of per- 



An Elephant Kraal. 197 

formances to perfection. The 'cnteness with which he 
looks after the equivalent of ** threepenny bits" in the 
mud — blowing awa^ the latter, and at last, when baffled 
in his attempt to pick up the tiny coin by the edge with 
his sensitive trunk, drawing it in by suction, was very 
striking. Once caught, he held it safely until, with up- 
turned trunk, he delivered it to the keeper on his back* 
Mr. de Soysa turns his elephants to account in carting, 
ploughing, road-making, and felling jungle in his Batna- 
pura and other extensive properties ; and surely this last- 
mentioned is an occupation for which they are specially 
well adapted in the low-country, considering the way in 
which they knock down with their heads trees which 
would take some time for a Eandyan to cut through. 
Why should not a ** felling " elephant, more especially for 
low-country planters, be hired out like a portable steam 
threshing-mill at home ? 

Many people, in speaking of last night's work, condemn 
the native beaters because they refused to do what the 
Europeans effected; but this is a very inaccurate and 
foolish mode of criticism. The natives knew the actual 
danger of the situation from long experience — the Euro- 
peans did not. The beaters, knowing that a charge or 
succession of charges would be the result so soon as the 
** durais,*' or " mahatmayds,"* went in with fire and spear, 
cleared out of the way as fast as possible : the more men 
in the way in such a case, the more havoc. Finally, we 
would ask how many of the volunteer beaters and of " the 
forlorn hope" would repeat their work under the same 
circumstances were the opportunity offered to them ? We 
think the men who came out saying they had been taught 
a lesson which would last a lifetime, were those who took 
the right view, and instead of depreciating the work of the 
beaters, who had been driving for weeks together when 
the elephants were fresh — ^not half-starved and worn-out — 
the opinion of the volunteers respecting their endurance 
and pluck ought to be sustained.! No wonder that Mr. 
Dawson should say that he wished the visitors who 
ridiculed the slow work made on Tuesday and Wednesday 

* Durai Tamil, Mahatmayd Sinh., for master or gentleman. 

t There can be little doubt that, if the natives had been left to their 
own time and ways, the whole twenty-three elephants of the two herds, 
would have been kraaled. 



198 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

had come down to see the character of the jungle through 
which the work had to be done, or that the princes had 
been allowed to inspect it. The small cane-like bambu 
grows so closely together as to be impenetrable ; the only 
paths are those made by the elephants, or which are cut 
out by the beaters. The bambu, when levelled by the 
elephants, is as slippery as ice, and the rain had rendered 
it, if possible, more so. 

Let me now describe the spot. The last part of '' the 
drive " between the stockades is about 150 yards across ; 
it was covered with the densest bambu jungle ; it consisted 
of two hollows or ravines with a ridge between, and all 
inclming towards the entrance to the kraal. From the 
entrance to where the European volunteers took up their 
position could not be more than 250 yards, the elephants 
being between. It will be readily seen, therefore, that the 
ground was as difficult a place to work in as ever an old 
campaigner or sportsman encountered. 

Eetuming to the grand stand, now well filled, it was 
evident that the four safe, working, tame elephants, and 
the two or three of the reserve force, had commenced 
active operations. They were mounted by from two to 
three noosers each, while several assistants with spears 
and ropes followed behind at the sides of the elephants, 
under which they occasionally ran when there appeared 
to be any danger of a charge. The wild elephants were 
in a state of great perturbation, rushing from one side of 
the kraal to the other, occasionally resting under the few 
patches of jungle that still remained, going down into the 
hollows to throw water and mud over their backs — spurt- 
ing each other with water seemed to be a favourite 
occupation. It was a most amusing as well as touching 
sight to see the little calves do this to the tame elephants 
when near them once or twice, as if to appease them and 
make friends. Clear views of all the herds were now had, 
and the elephants could be counted. The ** tusker " is a 
huge fellow in bulk more than in height : he has lost half 
his tail, as if it had been shot off, and his tusks are most 
unusually far apart in the way they stick out, and they 
also seem to have had the points broken off. He never 
seems to lead the herd, but rather to follow after. Never- 
theless, Mr. Unwin is sure it is the same animal that 
came to the kraal at midnight, and was shut in and 



An Elephant Kraal. 199 

^fterw^ards let loose. This was in a manner proved by 
the freqaenoj with which he m%de for the western gate 
to-day in his wanderings, in the hope, no doubt, of getting 
out once more. Once only did he try to charge the 
palisade, but, before he could get as far, the pointed sticks 
and spears of the watchers and the shouts of thousands 
of spectators drove him back. After the ''tusker'' came 
one large " cow *' and five more medium-sized elephants ; 
then three well-grown calves and two puny, diminutive little 
things whose dusty, tired appearance excited much pity, 
more especially from the ladies and a few children 
3)resent. 

The tame elephants and noosers were now at work, 
trying to break the herd into detachments, to segregate 
on 3 or more, so as to get a chance of surrounding and 
noosing. Very troublesome and difficult is this operation : 
occasionally it is done by good luck in the minimum of 
time, while again hours may be spent over it. As it was, 
after what seemed a long time to the onlookers (relieved, 
however, by some exciting and still more amusing 
passages), two, or indeed three, got noosed almost instan- 
taneously. Save with the little ones, there was no at- 
tecnpt by the herd at fraternizing with, or even recognizing 
the tame ones. The sight of men on their backs seemed 
to put an end to all thought of such a thing, and they 
steadily avoided a meeting as loag as they could, dodging 
up and down, in and out and round about, until, once too 
often, they came across through a hollow, and the Philis- 
tines — ^in the shape of Banhdimi and Ellawala's maji of 
*' the breeches" — ^were among them. A slight attempt at 
A charge or fight was quickly repressed with a few blows 
from the spears, and a thump with the head of the tame 
olephant ; the *' tusker" sheering off, showing no inclina- 
tion to interfere. But not so with the little calf, who, 
when two of the larger elephants were jammed up, and a 
noosed rope, cleverly placed on a leg of each, was tied 
about them, cried out, and would not be comforted or 
induced to leave. '' Breeches '^ and Banhdmi were now 
in for serious work ; their prizes struggled with elephan- 
tine strength; one especially — ^the mother of a calf— 
oould not be moved from the spot, and in rage and 
despair at last fell prostrate, never to rise again I The 
struggle was a short but severe one, and the natives at 



200 Ceylon in the JvMlee Year. 

once recognized it as a case of "broken heart." The 
poor brute lay panting for an hour or so afterwards, then 
heaved a deep sigh, and at last all was still, save that the 
httle calf would not leave her side for a long time, and 
that once or twice the rest of the herd in passing the 
spot, attempted to heave up their companion. Far more 
tonching, however, was the sight witnessed the night 
before by Mr. D. Mackay, when two elephants made a 
persistent endeavour to raise their fallen companion, the 
dead cow, while its little calf tried once more to obtain 
sustenance from its parent."^ 

To return, however, to the second large elephant 
noosed : he was a plump, vigorous, medium-sized fellow» 
and resisted most determinedly the moving, pushing^ 
and dragging of him halfway across the kraal, and the 
final tying to the tree. This, in fact, was only accom- 
plished when Eanhdmi and ** Breeches " jammed him 
between their elephants, who, evidently fully under- 
standing what was wanted, pressed so hard and so 
guarded the ways of exit with their trunks, that their 
captive had perforce to remain perfectly still. All this 
was a most interesting, instructive sight, and then, when 
the tying was done — the hind legs only being securely 
clasped in several folds of strong rope, which again were 
drawn several times round a tree immediately alongside 
the grand stand — how the poor prisoner writhed and 
twisted, using all his prodigious strength to break away 
the rope, or pull the tree down, running round and round 
in despair of an outlet, pawing the earth, stretching him-^ 
self with eel-like contortions, and then, in hopelessness of 
any release, and under the agony of his disgrace, like a 
true oriental, throwing up clouds of dust over his head, 
and back with his trunk ! Very soon, another of similar 
size and appearance was noosed and dragged up a lon^ 
way to a tree facing Byrde's stand, and one of the active 
bull-calves being simultaneously caught, very quickly the 
fan became *' fast and furious.'* This little calf gave 
more trouble than the two big ones ; the noosers left him 
as soon as one leg was confined to a tree, and to less ex- 
perienced hands was left the task of tying a rope round 
his neck and shoulders so as to keep him quiet and secure 

* Messrs. W. L. H. Skeen and Go/s photograph of one of these^ 
pathetic incidents is reproduced in the illustration facing page 179. 



* An Elephant Kraal. 201 

Bnt how the fellow resistecl, stinggled, twisted, and threw 
the rope off ! The cooeo had to be passed over his head 
as well as trunk, hut the latter was sent out at all impos- 
sible angles, so that no rope ccnld be placed ronnd it. At 
last, Messrs. G. Agar and Mnnro descended to the rescue, 
bnt they were bafiQed again and again; as soon as the 
rope was round it slipped off ; they were charged and had 
to fly back ; the little fellow bellowed like a bull ; he 
blew at them, he would not be tied, and not until seme 
one seized the trunk and held it, was the rope got 
round and a secure shoulder-knot made. This done, the 
calf set up a regular series of bellowings, making more ado 
than all the others put together. Great was the amuse- 
ment afforded by this capture, and again and again was 
the wish expressed throughout the stand that the princes 
had stayed for this day's experiences, which well repaid 
all the trouble and delay. 

But still greater fun was to follow ; another calf, plump 
and strong, had been noosed, as well as a third big ele- 
phant, and as these were being pulled towards two suitable 
trees one of the noosers, getting an ugly shove from the 
calf, received a wound on his forehead which drew blood. 
Almost simultaneously Mr. Saunders sent orders to release 
these two captives at once, and noose the ** tusker,'' as 
many had to leave and the day was now wearing on. No 
sooner was the calf released than he charged right and 
left, with trunk uplifted, bellowing as he went, and 
carrying all before him among rows of native beaters and 
a number of planters and others who had now descended 
into the kraal near the stands. The scene was comical in 
the extreme ; there was just the least spice of danger to 
add zest to it, but the little fellow turned at the show of 
a pointed stick. It seemed as if he said, '*You have 
given me a great fright ; now I'll do my best to give you 
a taste of the same." White clothes especially seemed 
to provoke his anger; one or two gentlemen in white 
coats were followed again and again ; one of them, Mr. E. 
Smyth, between laughing and dodging and keeping off 
his mad but *cute little antagonist, had quite enough to 
do, and the spectators roared at the fun. Tired out at 
last, the little fellow with a loud grunt made for the tame 
elephants, and ranged himself alongside, as if with hi& 
friends. He did not seem to care about the wild herd 



202 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

now ; he was a civilized elephant, and followed the tamers 
wherever they went. At last he found oat Soysa's 
<* tasker '' standing on one side, and oharging under him 
created a tremendous uproar, for the tusker didn't like it a 
bit, and trumpeted out what seemed to be : '< You mind 
your own business, you young rascal, or I'll settle you." 
Nothing, however, could quiet this ** irrepressible ** alto- 
gether ; at odd moments he would make a charge on his 
own account right across the kraal, and there can be no 
doubt that he greatly disturbed the rest of the noosing, so 
that it was a pity he was let loose, save for the amuse- 
ment he gave to the company. The wild ** tusker '* 
would not be caught ; he showed no fight, would shirk a 
broadside, slunk aside and dodged ; and yet it became 
evident the tame elephants and the noosers did not care 
to get too near him. The fact is he is too old to be 
trained, and is of no service at all, save for his ivories, 
which can be got by shooting. [" Cured of sores " is the 
expression used to indicate a tamed elephant.] Enough 
had, however, been seen to warrant all who waited over 
Thursday, in pronouncing the kraal a success in showing 
the various operations connected with one ; a notable 
success in affording a more than usual amount of sport 
and comical fun, as also in raising, at moments, feelings 
of sympathy and pity; an extraordinary success in the 
imprecedented work done by European volunteers — ** the 
forlorn hope," the sudden charge, the marvellous escape, 
and the crowning victory in the forcing in of a dozen 
elephants into the kraal on Wednesday night. 

How many more of the six or seven wild elephants I 
left running about the kraal were noosed to-day (Satur- 
day), and whether the *' tusker " was tied, I have yet ta 
learn ; but my part as narrator is over, and I can only 
say I am not likely ever to forget 

The Labugamkanda Kraal in Honour of Princes 
Albert Victor and George in 1882. 



APPENDIX n. 

The following interesting extracts from the first volume 
of Major Forbes's ** Eleven Years in Ceylon " * are given 
with the permission of the publisher. The orthography 
of native names found in the original has been retained. 

[No. l.-~CHAPTER X.] 

THE ANCIENT CAPITAL, ANURADHAPOOEA.t 

" Benmants of things that have pass'd away, 
Fragments of stone rear*d by creatures of clay." — ^Btbon. 

In ages of impenetrable antiquity, the plain on which 
Anurddhapoora was afterwards built had acquired a sacred 
character ; for it is recorded that when the first Buddha 
of the present era visited this place he found it already 
hallowed as a scene of the ancient religious rites of pre- 
ceding generations, and consecrated by Buddhas of a 
former era. The position of Anurddhapoora has nothing 
to recommend it for the capital of Ceylon ; and the site, 
if not chosen from caprice, was probably dictated by 
superstition. It would not, therefore, be difl&cult to 
account for its final desertion, consequent decay, and 
present desolation, even if history had not preserved a 
record of the feuds, famines, wars, and pestilence which 
at various times oppressed the country, and reduced the 
number of inhabitants, so as to render the remainder 

* "Eleyen Years in Ceylon; comprising Sketches of the Field 
Sports and Natural History of that Colony, and an Account of its 
History and Antiquities." By Major Forbes, 78th Highlanders. 
2 Yols. London : Bichard Bentley. 

t For the latest account of Anur&dhapoora and the ancient ruins, 
see ** The Buried Cities of Ceylon," by S. M. Burrows, C.C.S., 
published by A. M. and J. Ferguson. 



204 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 




The Ancient Capital, Anwrddhapoora. 205 

incapable of maintaining the great embankments of their 
artificial lakes. These having burst, their waters spread 
over the country as their channels were neglected, and 
this made its unbealthiness permanent by forming noxious 
swamps and nourishing unwholesome forests. The warm 
and damp nature of the Ceylon climate excites an activity 
of vegetation, which the indolence and apathy of the 
native character are not calculated to struggle against; 
Und the present population is inadequate either in number 
or energy to do more than resist the incessant effort of 
the vegetable kingdom, stimulated by an eternal spring, 
to extend its beautiful but baneful luxuriance over that 
portion of the surrounding districts which man still re- 
tains in precarious silbjection.* Anurddhapoora is first 
mentioned by that name about 500 years before Christ ; 
it was then a village, and the residence of a prince who 
took the name of Anurddha on his settling at this place, 
which the King Fdnduwdsa had assigned to him when 
he came to visit his sister the Queen Bhadda-kachdna. 
They were grandchildren of Amitodama, the paternal 
uncle of Gautama Buddha. It was chosen for the capital 
by the King Pddukdbhya, b.o. 487 ; and in the reign of 
Dewenipiatissa, which commenced xs.c. 807, it received the 
<$ollar-bone of Gautama Buddha, his begging-dish filled 
with relics, and a branch of the bo-tree under which he 
had reclined. Anurddhapoora had been sanctified by the 
presence of former Buddhas, and these memorials of 
Gautama increased its sacred character ; additional reHcs 
were subsequently brought, for which temples were reared 
by successive sovereigns ; and Wahapp, who commenced 
his reign a.d. 62, finished the walls of the city, which 
were sixty-four niiles in extent, each side being sixteen 
nules, and thus enclosed a space of 256 square miles. 
Anurddhapoora is mentioned, or rather is laid down in 

* Six years after the time of which I am now writing, GK>yemment 
iormed a road to Aripo, and established a European officer at 
Anurddhapoora as revenue and judicial agent for the district, in 
order, if possible, to hasten the deyelopment of its resources. When 
I left the island it was considered an ujihealthy station, but, by 
perseverance, there is little doubt that it will improve. Had this 
district been formerly unhealthy, Anurddhapoora would not so long 
have remained the capital of the island. [Anurddhapoora district and 
town have, we need scarcely say, been greatly improved of recent 
years.— J. F.] 



206 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the map of Ptolemy in its proper position, and by the 
name of Anurogrammum.* 

For upwards of 1200 years Anurddhapoora remained as 
the capital of the island, with the exception of one reign, 
when a parricide and usurper transferred the insignia of 
royalty to the impregnable rock-fort of Sigiri. In the 
eighth century Polannarua was chosen as the capital in 
preference to Anuradhapoora ; at which place the fame of 
wealth had survived its possession, and too often attractad 
the spoiler. The religious edifices were occasionally 
repaired by pious sovereigns until the time of Mdgha, a 
successful invader, who held sway in Ceylon from a.d. 
1219 until 1240, during which time he completed the 
destruction of many temples, and endeavoured to destroy 
the Cingalese records. 

Knox, speaking of Anurddhapoora, which he passed in 
making his escape from captivity in a.d. 1679, says, ** It 
is become a place of solemn worship, in consequence of 
the bo-tree under which Buddha sat.'* He adds, '< They 
report ninety kings + have reigned there successively,, 
where, by the ruins that still remain, it appears they 
spared not for pains and labour to build temples and high 
monuments to the honour of this god, as if they had been 
bom only to hew rocks and great stones, and lay them up 
in heaps : these kings are now happy spirits, having 
merited it by these their labours." In makmg his escape 
along the bed of the Malwatte-oya,| Enox passed another 
part of the ruins, but does not seem to have been aware 
that they were part of Anurddhapoora. He says, ** Here 
and there, by the side of this river, is a world of hewn 
stone pillars and other heaps of hewn stones, which I 
suppose formerly were buildings ; and in three or four 
places are the ruins of bridges built of stone, some 
remains of them yet standing upon stone pillars.'' 

The above extracts are taken from '<An Historical 
Belation of the Island of Ceylon in the East Indies, by 
Bobert Knox, a captive there for nearly twenty years." 

* Grdma, or Gramya, is used for a town ; so also is Poora, but the 
latter generally means city. 

f It is the general belief of uneducated natives that the name of 
the city is derived from Anu-Bajah ^ninety kings^ ; but it was from 
the name of the constellation Anurddna, under which it was founded. 

{ Malwatte-oya, flower-garden river. 



The Ancient Capital, Anurddhapoora. 207 

This is a work of great interest, and was originally pub- 
lished in London in 1681. Nothing can be more admir- 
able than the extent of memory, acute observation, and 
inflexible veracity exhibited in his account of the country 
and people; nor can anything be more interesting than 
the simple narrative of his own sufferings. His persever- 
ance, fortitude, and Arm religious belief enabled him to 
overcome misfortunes, to rescue himself from a tedious 
captivity, and Anally to regain his station as commander 
of a ship under the East India Company. 

The father of Bobert Enox was also named Bobert : he 
commanded the Ann frigate in the service of the East 
India Company, and sailed on the 2l8t of January, 1657, 
from the Downs ; the vessel was dismasted in a storm on 
the Coromandel coast on the 19th of November, 1669, 
and proceeded to the bay of Cotiar (opposite to Trinko- 
malee) to reflt, and with permission to trade there. For 
about twenty days the crew of the ship were allowed to 
land and return without any interruption ; but after that, 
a native chief, by order of the Kandian king, contrived 
by falsehood and. treachery to seize the captain and seven 
of his men; then, by the same devices, he got hold of 
another boat and her crew of eleven men. He next 
attempted to gain possession of the ship, by inducing the 
captain to send an order to the officer on board, directing 
him to bring the vessel up the river ; the captain sent his 
own son, but it was to warn the officer, and direct him to 
proceed without loss of time to Porto Novo. Young 
Enox, however, returned to share his father's captivity ; 
and the whole of those taken prisoners were removed into 
the interior of the country. The captain and his son 
(Bobert) were sent to the village of Bandar Eoswatte, 
and there were soon attacked by severe fever and ague, 
which carried off the father, February the 9th, 1661. 
Young Enox was then very ill, and it was not without 
much difficulty that he managed to get his father's body 
buried ; and for many months he suffered severely from 
the effects of the same disease. It was not long after the 
loss of his father that he accidentally had an opportunity 
of purchasing an EngHsh Bible at a price sufficiently 
moderate for his means. Never for a moment laying 
aside his design of escape, yet behaving with such dis- 
cretion as never to incur suspicion from the jealous tyrant 



208 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

"who then ruled in Kandy, Enox acquired a character for 
prudence, industry, and honesty, which is even yet pre- 
served by tradition in the neighbourhood of the place 
where he resided, and where a spot is still known as the 
white man's garden.* After a captivity of nearly twenty 
years' duration he contrived to accomplish his escape, not 
without great danger from the numerous wild animals 
and crocodiles that are to be found near the course of the 
Malwatte-oya, which flows through a dense forest and a 
<$ountry void of population. Knox reached the Dutch 
fort of Aripo on the 18th of October, 1679 ; afterwards, 
having been sent to Batavia, he from thence returned to 
England in September, 1680, and was soon after made 
captain of the Tarquin in the East India Oompany*s 
service. 

All the ruins at Anuradhapoora, even the lofty monu- 
ments which contain the relics of the Buddha, are either 
•entirely covered with jungle, or partly obscured by forests ;t 
these the imagination of natives has peopled with unholy 
phantoms, spirits of the unrighteous, doomed to wander 
near the mouldering walls which were witnesses of their 
guilt, and are partakers of their desolation. 

Although simplicity is the most distinguishing cha- 
aracteristic of the ancient architectural remains of the 
<]!ingalese, yet some of the carving in granite might com- 
pete with the best modern workmanship of Europe (in 
the same material) both as to depth and sharpness of 
•cutting ; and the sculptures at Anuradhapoora, and places 
built in remote ages, are distinguished from any attempts 
of modem natives, not less by the more animated action 
of the figures than by greater correctness of proportion. 

The only place clear of jungle was in front of the 
Maha-wihare (great temple), where a shady tree occupied 
4;he centre of a square, and a stone pillar, fourteen feet 
high, stood beside the figure of a bull cut in granite, and 
revolving on a pivot. In the entrance from this square 
into the Maha-wihare are a few steps admirably carved 
with laborious devices, and still in perfect preservation. 
Ascending these, and passing through a mean building of 
modern construction, you enter an enclosure 345 feet in 
length by 216 in breadth, which surrounds the court of 
4;he Bo-tree, designated by Baddhists as Jaya-Sri-maha- 

* Between Kandy and Gampola. 
t Great clearings have taken place of late years. — J. F. 



The Ancient Capital, Anurddhapoora. 209 

Bodinwahawai (the great, famous, and triomphant fig- 
tree).* Within the walls are perceived the remains of 
several small temples ; and the centre is occupied by the 
aacred tree, and the building in which it is contained or 
supported. This tree is the principal object of veneration 
to the numerous pilgrims who annually visit Anurddha- 
poora : they believe what their teachers assert, and their 
histories record, that it is a branch of the tree under 
which Gautama sat the day he became a Buddha, and 
that it was sent from Patalipoora by the King Dhar- 
masoka, who gave it in charge to his daughter Sangha- 
mitta ; this priestess had been preceded by her brother, 
Mihindoo, who, b.c. 807, was successful in re-establishing 
in Ceylon the purity of the Buddhist religion. 

No one of the several stems or branches of the tree is 
more than two feet in diameter; and several of the largest 
project through the sides of the terraced building in which 
it is growing. This structure consists of four platforms, 
decreasing in size as you ascend, and giving room for a 
broad walk round each of them.t From the self-reno- 
vating properties of the bo-tree, it is not at all impossible 
that this one might possess the great antiquity claimed 
for it by the sacred guardians : | if so, the forbearance of 
Malabar conquerors must be accounted for by their con- 
sidering this tree sacred to other gods; the profits derived 
from pilgrims may also have induced them to give full 
weight to the alleged partiality of Brahma for this beau- 
tiful tree. 

One side of the square in front of the Maha-wihare is 

* Ficus religiosa, generally called by natives Bo-gaha, bo-tree, the 
name generally used by Europeans. 

t The spot on whioh the tree stands is belieyed to have at former 
periods been the position where the emblematic trees of formei 
Buddhas grew, viz. Eakusanda Buddha's, the mahari tree; Kona- 
gamma Buddha's, the atika tree (ficus glomerata) ; and Kaseyapa's, 
the nigrodi (baniayan). 

t Buddhists assert that the sacred tree at Buddha Gya in Bahar 
"was planted by Dugdha-Kamini, King of Singhal-Dwipa, 414 
years before the birth of our Saviour." — Hamilton's E.I, Gazetteer, 
Dootoogaimoonoo, King of Ceylon, and a most zealous Buddhist, 
reigned from b.c. 164 until b.c. 140; and if the tree at Gya was 
planted by him, as above mentioned, not only the original one there, 
but also one planted by Dharmasoka, King of India, in the fourth 
century before Christ, at the same city, must have been destroyed 
by the votaries of an adverse faith. 

15 



230 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

occupied by the ruins of the Lowa-Maha-Paya, called also^ 
(from the materials with which it was covered) the Brazen 
ralace. The remains of this building consist of I6OO1 
stone pillars placed in forty parallel lines, forty pillars in. 
each, and occupying a square space, each side of which ia 
284 feet in length. The pillars in the middle of thia- 
min are still eleven and a half feet above the ground, and 
measure two feet in breadth by one foot and a half in 
thickness ; the middle pillars are slightly ornamented, but 
those in the outer lines are plain, and only half their 
thickness, having been split by means of wedges, the 
marks of which operation they still retain. The Lowa- 
Maha-Paya was erected by the King Dootoogaimoonoo 
B.C. 142 : its height was 270 feet ; it contained 1000.^ 
apartments for priests, and was covered with one sheet of 
metal. This edifice seems soon to have fallen into decay ;. 
and was rebuilt by Dootoogaimoonoo's successor, who- 
reduced its height, making it seven instead of nine storeys,., 
which it was at its original formation. It underwent 
many repairs, and was varied in height by several different 
kings, until a.d. 286, at which time it was thrown down 
by Mahasen during the period of his temporary apostacy : 
so completely did this monarch execute lus work of 
destruction on this and several other religious buildings, 
that their sites were ploughed up and sown with grain.^ 
Having returned to his former faith, Mahasen commenced 
rebuilding the Maha-Paya, but died before it was finished; 
and it was completed by his son and successor, KitsirL 
Maiwan, soon after his accession in a.d. 802. It was 
then that the original pillars were split to supply the 
places of those which had been broken. Amongst the 
sacred occupants of this building, the priests most 
eminent for their piety were exalted to the uppermost 
storey, whilst those who had fewest claims to sanctity were 
lodged nearest to the earth. As native stairs only differ 
in name from ladders, the ascent of nine stories must 
have been a severe trial to the bodily infirmities of the 
elder priests ; but one of the strongest prejudices of the 
natives, and about which they continue to be exceedingly 
jealous, was not allowing an equal or inferior to sit on any 
seat or remain in any place more elevated than them- 
selves. From adherence to punctilio on this subject, there 
was a ludicrous scene at Colombo in 1802, when the 



The Ancient Capital, Anurddhapoora. 211 

Eandian ambassadors remonstrated against entering the 
carriage sent to convey them to an audience with 
Oovemor North, because the coachman was placed on a 
more elevated seat than the one which they were ta 
occupy. This weighty matter was happily adjusted ta 
their satisfaction, and they entered the carriage; but 
positively refused to allow the doors to be shut, fearing 
they should appear as prisoners. 

On the left of the road leading from the Maha-wihare 
towards the ddgoba of Buwanwelli, and in thick jungle, 
six carved stones define the limits of a small mound. 
This is the spot where a grateful people and a zealous 
priesthood performed the last duties to the remains of 
Dootoogaimoonoo ; a king whose valour and piety had 
restored the supremacy of the Cingalese race and Buddhist 
religion, and who had not only repaired the injuries 
which the capital had sustained from foreign invaders of 
an adverse faith, but had ornamented it with many of 
these buildings which even now attract attention and 
excite wonder after having endured for 2000 years. 

The quantity of game in the immediate neighbourhood 
of the ruins was astonishing, and in no part of the island 
are elephants more numerous ; for within the precincts 
of this hallowed city, at the time I speak of, 1828, na 
native would have ventured to transgress the first com- 
mandment of the Buddha, viz., '' From the meanest insect 
up to man, thou shalt not kill." As if aware of their 
right of sanctuary, whole herds of spotted deer and flocks 
of pea-fowl allowed us to approach very near to them ; 
and while employed in examining the ruins, in the pre- 
sence and with tiie assistance of the priests, I deemed it 
advisable to commit no murder on the denizens of the 
forest ; but on the last day of our stay we left the gen-^ 
tlemen of the long yellow robe behind, and proceeded to 

hunt deer with Mr. C 's dogs in a plain about three 

miles from the place of our temporary residence. 

When not employed in speaking, our followers seemed 
to be eternally occupied in chewing betel, a custom almost 
universal at this time with all ranks of natives ; and 
although the name of the leaf of a creeping-plant re- 
sembling pepper is used as a general term, three com- 
ponent parts are necessary for this masticatory; viz» 
areka-nut, which is used in very thin slices; fine pow> 



212 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

dered lime, made into a paste; and a small portion of 
these two being rolled np in a betel-leaf, the whole is put 
in the mouth. This preparation tinges the saliva, the 
lips, and even the teeth of a dark-red oolour; but I 
believe it to be perfectly wholesome, and to have some 
useful properties, such as soothing nervous excitement, 
and acting as a stimulant, without any of the evil effects 
produced by the use of spirits, which nevertheless is, I 
am afraid, too often superseding the use of betel. Those 
who could afford it mixed up cardamom-seeds and the 
leaves of various aromatic plants with the areka-nut, and 
the value of the instruments for preparing the betel gave 
one a pretty good idea of the wealth and rank of the 
possessor : a pair of nippers for slicing the areka-nut, a 
small box for holding the lime, and a straw case to 
contain betel-leaves, might, I believe, have been found 
tucked in the waist-cloth of every one of the several 
hundred natives who accompanied us. Night and day 
they were chewing betel, and when they were awake they 
seemed to talk of nothing else; exchanging leaves and 
the contents of their lime boxes seemed like the old 
Scotch custom of exchanging snuff-mulls. 

Amongst the ruins of this city, the ddgobas,* or monu- 
mental tombs of the relics of Buddha, the mode in which 
they are constructed, the object for which they are in- 
tended — above all, their magnitude — demand particular 
notice. The characteristic form of all monumental Bud- 
dhistical buildings is that of a bell-shaped tomb sur- 
mounted by a spire, and is the same in all countries which 
have had Buddha for their prophet, lawgiver, or god. 
Whether in the outline of the cumbrous mount, or in 
miniature within the laboured excavation, this peculiar 
shape (although variously modified) is general, and 
enables us to recognize the neglected and unhonoured 
shrines of Buddha in countries where his religion no 
longer exists, and his very name is unknown. The gaudy 
Shoemadoo of Pegu, the elegant Toopharama of Anurdd- 
hapoora, the more modern masonry of Boro Budor in 
Java, are but varieties of the same general form ; and in 
the desolate caves of Carli, as in the gaudy excavations 
and busy scenes of Dambool, there is still extant the sign 

* D^goba, from Dhatn-garbe (womb, or receptacle of a relic) : see 
engraying on page 129. 



The Ancient Capital, Anurddhapoora. 21S 

of Buddha — the tomb of his relics. Ddgobas may be 
referred to the first stage of architectural adventure^ 
although I camiot agree with those writers who assert 
that the character and form of Buddhist buildings betray 
evident marks of having been borrowed from the figure 
of a tent ; for in my opinion their progress may clearly 
be traced firom the humble heap of earth which covers 
the ashes or urn of the dead up to the stupendous mount 
of masonry which we see pUed above some shrunken 
atom of mortality. These monuments in Ceylon are 
built around a small cell, or hollow stone, containing the 
relic ; along with which a few ornaments and emblems of 
Buddhist worship were usually deposited, such as pearls, 
precious stones, and figures of Buddha : the number and 
value of these depended on the importance attached to 
the relic, or the wealth of the person who reared the 
monument. 

The description given in Cingalese histories of the rich 
offerings and rare gems deposited with some of the relics 
is very splendid, but the existence of wealth and wonders 
which cannot be reached may well be doubted; the 
accounts of the external decorations and ornaments of 
these ddgobas are also magnificent, and probably more 
correct. In a sohona, or Cingalese cemetery, may be 
perceived a variety of miniature ddgobas : if the little 
earthen mound raised over the ashes of the dead be 
encircled with a row of stones, we see the origin of the 
projecting basement ; if the tomb be that of a headman 
or high priest, we may find it cased with stone, and per- 
haps surrounded with a row of pillars : on all these we 
find an aewaria branch planted ; which, after taking root 
and shooting out its cluster of leaves, gives the semblance 
of the spire and its spreading termination.''' In short, 
the monumental tombs of Buddha's relics only differ in 
size, and in the durability of their materials, from the 
humble heap which covers the ashes of an obscure priest 
or village chief. The tomb of Alyattes, as described by 
Herodotus, and which he informs us as a monument of 
art was only second to the remains in Egypt and Babylon, 
appears to have been of the same form as the sepulchral 
mounds of the Buddhists. In material and construction 

• Called Eot by the Cingalese, and Tee by the Siamese. 



214 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

the ddgobas of Anuradhapoora far exceed the tomb of 
Alyattes, and fully equal it in size. All the ddgobas at 
Anuradhapoora were built of brick, and incrusted with a 
preparation of lime, coco-nut water, and the glutinous 
juice of a fruit which grows on a tree called by the 
natives Paragaha. This preparation is of a pure white ; 
it receives a polish nearly equal to marble, and is ex- 
tremely durable. The Euwanwelli-saye, one of these 
monuments of peculiar sanctity, was built by the King 
Dootoogaimoonoo ; but the spire being unfinished at the 
time of his death, b.c. 140, it was completed by his 
brother and successor, Saidatissa. It stands in the centre 
of an elevated square platform, which is paved with large 
stones of dressed granite, each side being about 500 feet 
in length, and surrounded by a fosse seventy feet in 
breadth ; the scarp, or sides of the platform, is sculptured 
to represent .the fore-parts and heads of elephants, pro- 
jecting and appearing to support the massive super- 
structure to which they form so appropriate an ornament. ' 
In the embankment surrounding the fosse, a pillar, deep 
sunk in the earth, still projects sixteen feet above the 
surface, and is four feet in diameter; this stone is believed 
to have been removed from the spot where the ddgoba 
now stands, and that it once bore an inscription and 
prophecy, which in a superstitious age no doubt caused 
its own fulfilment. The prediction ran, that at the place 
where this stone stood, a superb dagoba of 120 cubits* 
in height would be reared by a fortunate and pious 
monarch. 

Dootoogaimoonoo, during his last illness, caused him- 
self to be conveyed near to this monument of his piety ; 
and when all hopes of completing the spire during his 
lifetime were at an end, his brother had the model of it 
made of light timber: this placed on the dome, and 
covered with cloth, satisfied the anxious wish of the 
expiring king. The place to which Dootoogaimoonoo 
was conveyed is a large granite slab surrounded with 
pillars ; near this a stone, hollowed out in the shape of a 
man's body, is shown as the bath which he used when 
49ufiering from the bite of a venomous snake. 

On the stone pavement which surrounds the Euwan- 

* Carpenter's cubit, two feet three inches. 



The Ancient Capital^ Anurddhapoora. 215 

li^elli-saye lies the broken statue of the King Bd»tiyatissa, 
^who reigned from b.c. 19 until a.d. 9, and appears to 
have been one of those persevering zealots who ** hope to 
merit heaven by making earth a hell : ** the marks of his 
knees worn in the granite pavement are pointed out as 
memorials of superior piety, and certainly, if authentic, 
Tjear lasting testimony to the importunity of his prayers 
or the sincerity of his devotions. It is recorded of this 
"king that by supplication he obtained Divine assistance 
to enable him to open the underground entrance into the 
interior cell of this temple; and that he succeeded in 
entering and worshipping the many relics of Buddha 
which it contained. In the thirteenth century, Md.ga, a 
foreign invader, instead of faith, employed force : he 
broke into the sanctum, plundered its treasures, pulled 
down the temples around BuwanweUi, and ruined its 
ddgoba, which was originally 270 feet in height, but is 
now a conical mass of bricks overgrown with brushwood, 
and 189 feet high. Sanghatissa placed a pinnacle of 
iglass on the spire of Euwanwelli, as the author of the 
Mahawanso says, *^ to serve as a protection against light- 
ning." Sanghatissa reigned four years, and was poisoned 
in A.D. 246. The Mahawanso was written between 
A.D. 459 and 477, and shows that the non-conducting 
property of glass with regard to the electric fluid had 
Ibeen remarked previous to that period. 

At a considerable distance from the outer enclosure of 
ihe ddgoba the priest pointed out to me a stone slab 
twelve and a half feet long by nine and a half feet broad, 
which is supposed to cover the secret entrance by which 
the pious king, as well as the ruthless invader, gained 
admittance to the interior of the Buwanwelli-saye. A 
few weeks previously to our visit, the late high-priest, an 
•albino, had died at a very advanced age : he had been 
Jong known by the appellation of the White Priest of 
Anurddhapoora; and his senior pupil, who accompanied 
me in exploring the ruins, aspired to succeed his master. 
I was then along with the agent of the district, through 
whose recommendation he expected to be appointed; 
therefore no spot was so sacred, and no secret so precious, 
but that it might be communicated to me. The aspirant 
became high-priest, and ever after denied to European 
visitors all knowledge of the secret entrance to this monu- 



216 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

ment, as well as several other places of peculiar sanctity p 
neither conld it he bronght to his unwilling remembrance^ 
that he had ever known them himself, or pointed them 
out to any one. The history of this building, its tradi- 
tions, the list of offerings made to the relics enshrined, 
within it, and the splendour of its external appearance, 
are recorded at length ; but its chronicle contains so 
much exaggeration in regard to the number of the offer- 
ings, and so little variety of events, that the specimen' 
already given may perhaps be considered more than 
sufficient, and will be my excuse for not dilating on the 
history of other buildings, of which only similar &.cts are 
written, and similar dull details have been preserved. 

Toophdr^maya, although inferior to many in size, yet 
far exceeds any dagoba in Ceylon, both in elegance and. 
unity of design, and in the beauty of the minute sculp- 
tures on its tall, slender, and graceful columns; this- 
ddgoba is low, broad at the top, and surrounded by four 
lines of pillars, twenty-seven in each Une, fixed in the 
elevated granite platform so as to form radii of a circle of 
which the monument is the centre. These pillars are 
twenty-four feet in height, with square bases, octagonal 
shafts, and circular capitals ; the base and shafts, fourteen 
inches in thickness, and twenty-two feet in length, are 
each of one stone ; the capitals are much broader than 
the base, and are highly ornamented. Toophdrdmaya was 
built over the collar-bone of Gautama, when it was 
brought from Maghada in the reign of Dewenepeatissa, 
B.C. 807 ; and the ruins of a building which adjoins it 
received the Dalada relic when it arrived in Ceylon^ 
A.D. 809. 

Lankardmaya was erected in the reign of Mahasen^ 
between a.d. 276 and a.d. 802 ; it is in better preserva- 
tion, but much inferior in effect to the Toophdrdmaya^ 
from which the design of the building is copied. 

The Abhayagiri ddgoba, built by the King Walagam 
Bahoo, between the period of his restoration to the throne 
B.C. 88, and his death b.c, 76, was the largest ever erected 
in Ceylon : it was 405 feet* in height ; and the platform 
on which it stands, as well as the fosse and surrounding 
wall, are proportionately extensive. The height of this. 

* 180 Cingalese carpenter's cubits. 



The Ancient Capital^ Anurddhapoora. 217 

rain is now 230 feet, and the length of the outer wall 
one mile and three quarters; the whole of the building, 
except a few patches near the summit, is covered with 
thick jungle and high trees, even where the interstices 
of the pavement, composed of large granite slabs, were 
all that yielded nourishment to the trees or secured their 
roots. 

The Jaitawanardmaya was commenced by the King 
Mahasen, and completed by his successor., Kitsiri Maiwan, 
A.D. 810 : its height was originally 316 feet,* and its. 
ruins are still 269 feet above the surrounding plain. A 
gentleman, who visited Anuradhapoora in 1832, calcu- 
lated the cubic contents of this temple at 456,071 cubic 
yards; and remarked that a brick wall, twelve feet in 
height, two feet in breadth, and upwards of ninety-seven 
miles in length, might be constructed with the still re- 
maining materials. Even to the highest pinnacle the 
Jaitawanaramaya is encompassed and overspread by trees 
and brushwood ; these are the most active agents of ruin 
to the ancient buildings of G^lon, as their increasing 
roots and towering stems, shaken by the wind, overturn 
and displace what has long resisted, and would have 
slowly yielded before time and the elements. 

During our stay at Anurddhapoora, a Kandian lady 
presented a petition to the agent of Government, request- 
ing his interference on behalf of her son, who was detained 
as a State prisoner for having been implicated in the re- 
bellion of 1817-18. She stated that he was her only son, 
and that the large family estates were now ravaged and 
laid waste by wild animals ; that in this remote district^ 
for want of his superintendence, the tanks for irrigation 
were neglected, and cultivation was rapidly decreasing ; 
moreover, that he was the hereditary guardian of the 
sacred edifices of this ancient capital, and that in his ab- 
sence the buildings and temples were neither protected nor 
repaired, the revenues being either misapplied by the 
priests, or appropriated to their own use. The old lady 
also alluded to the antiquity of their family, whose ances- 
tor, she said, had accompanied the branch of the sacred 
tree from Patalipoora,t b.c. 807. On inquiring, I found 
that the very remote antiquity of this family was acknow- 

♦ 140 carpenter's cubits. f The modem Patna- 



318 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

ledged by the jealous chiefs of the mountain districts ; and 
I could not help feeling an interest in the last scion of a 
race whose admitted ancestry reached far beyond the line- 
tige of Courtenay, or the descent of Howard. 

This chief soon afterwards obtained permission to visit 
his estates ; and at a subsequent period, having assisted in 
securing the pretender to the Kandian throne (who had 
been secreted since 1818 in this part of the country), he 
was not only permitted to return to his estate, but was 
reinstated in office as chief of the district. Although not 
A clever man, his appearance and manners were dignified 
and gentlemanlike : he died in 1837, leaving a family to 
•continue the race, and bear the dignified appellation of 
Surya Kumara Singha (descended firom a prince of the 
eolar and the lion race). 

The system of adoption in the Kandian law, renders the 
•continuation of a particular family much more probable 
than in any country where such a proceeding is unknown, 
or unsanctioned by fixed institutions or all-powerful cus- 
tom. In Kandian law, a child adopted in infancy (and 
bom to parents of equal rank with the person who adopted 
the infant) has the same right of inheritance both to titles 
and estates as if the actual child of the person who had 
become its guardian, and who, after a public adoption, was 
•called and considered the father. In general, the children 
adopted were selected from the nearest relations of the 
person, who determined through this means to prevent all 
risk of being without children to watch his declining years, 
fl,nd inherit his family estates. Several of the highest rank 
of Kandian chiefs pretend to trace the descent of their 
families from those natives of Maghada who accompanied 
Mihindoo and the relics of Buddha from the continent in 
the fourth century before Christ. Two families claim 
descent from Upatissa, a minister of state, an interim 
king for one year, b.c. 505 ; and one of these, who main- 
tained his right by inheritance to the name which he bore 
{Upatissa), produced to me a box containing a quantity of 
'dust, and some minute frail shreds of tissue, which, he 
said, were the remains of a dress worn by his royal and 
somewhat remote ancestor. I have only seen a few written 
genealogies of Cingalese chiefs, and, in following them, 
found wider and more startling gaps than any I had been 
«.ccustomed to leap over in a backward trace to the pro- 



The Ancient Capital^ Anurddhapoora. 219 

■genitor of some individuals who figure in the modem 
British peerage. 

Amidst the ruins of the palace stand six square pillars 
supporting some remains of a cornice ; each of these pillars 
is formed of a single stone, eighteen feet in length and 
three in breadth. There also is the stone canoe made by 
-order of King Dootoogaimoonoo in the second century before 
Ohrist, to hold the liquid prepared for the refection of the 
priests ; it measures sixty-three feet in length, three and a 
half feet in breadth, and two feet ten inches in depth. With- 
in the precincts of the royal buildings, projecting from the 
mould, and half-covered by the roots of a tree, a stone 
trough, from which the State elephants drank, recalled to 
mind the history of King Elloona, and the busy, turbulent 
scenes enacted in bygone ages within those walls, where 
now the growl of the elephant, the startling rush of wild 
hog and deer, the harsh screams of peacock and toucan, 
increase the solemn but cheerless feelings inspired by a 
gloomy forest waving o*er a buried city. 

Elloona having murdered his cousin, the Queen Singha 
Wallee, became King of Ceylon, a.d. 88, and was soon after 
imprisoned by his rebellious subjects : the queen, in des- 
pair, caused her infant son to be dressed in his most costly 
robes, and ordered the nurse to place him at the feet of 
the State elephant, that the child might be killed, and 
escape the indignities inflicted on the monarch. The 
nurse did as she was commanded ; but the elephant (with- 
out hurting the young prince) broke his chain, rushed 
through the guards, threw down the gates, and forced his 
way to the royal captive, who got on his back, and, rushing 
through the streets of the capital, escaped in safety to the 
sea-coast. From thence he embarked for the Malaya 
country : having raised an army there, he returned to 
Ceylon, and regained his kingdom after an absence of three 
jears. Elloona recognized with affectionate joy the animal 
that had been the means of saving his life : and several 
tillages were appointed to furnish food and attendants to 
the royal elephant during the remainder of his life. 

The Isuramuni Wihare (a temple partly cut in the rock), 
the Saila Chytia (a small monument built on a spot where 
Buddha had rested himself), and the tomb of Elala, are 
amongst the ruins visited by the pious pilgrims. Elala 
was a successful invader who conquered Ceylon, b.c. 204, 



220 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

by means of an army which he led from Sellee (Tanjore). 
The Cingalese princes who possessed the southern and 
mountainous parts of the island as tributaries becoming 
powerful, Elala built thirty-two forts to protect the level 
country on the south against their incursions ; these forts 
were taken in succession by the Prince Dootoogaimoonoo, 
who finally encountered his rival in single combat, and 
slew him with a javelin. They were each mounted on an 
elephant, and as the battle was preceded by a challenge, 
both the leaders fought under the insignia of royalty : on 
the spot where Elala fell, Bootoogaimoonoo erected a 
monument and pillar, on which there was inscribed a 
prohibition against any one passing this tomb in any con- 
veyance, or with beating of drums. Elala is described,, 
even by the Buddhist historians, as being a good ruler and 
valiant warrior ; he must have been an old man when he 
encountered Dootoogaimoonoo, having reigned for forty- 
four years after completing the conquest of Ceylon : his- 
death occurred b.c. 161. Time has hallowed the monu- 
ment which it has failed to obscure, and the ruined tomb 
of an infidel is now looked upon by many Buddhist pil- 
grims as the remnant of a sacred edifice : although twenty 
centuries have elapsed since the death of Elala, I do not 
believe that the injunction of his conqueror has ever been 
disregarded by a native. In 1818, Pilame Talaw^, the 
head of the oldest Kandian family, when attempting to 
escape after the suppression of the rebellion in which he 
had been engaged, alighted from his litter, although weary 
and almost incapable of exertion ; and not knowing tho 
precise spot, walked on until assured that he had passed. 
hx beyond this ancient memorial. 

Pilame Talaw^ was apprehended in this district, and 
transported to the Isle of France ; from whence he was 
allowed to return in 1830, and soon after died from the 
effects of intemperance. He had narrowly escaped death 
in 1812 for treason to the King of Kandy, as sentence had 
been passed, and his father and cousin had already suffered, 
before he was brought prisoner to the city. The commence- 
ment of a religious festival was the reason assigned at that 
time for sparing his life ; although his slender abilities and 
slothful habits are supposed to have been more powerful 
arguments in favour of the king's granting mercy than the^ 
suppUcation of friends, or the intercession of the priests,. 



The Ancient Capital, Anurddhapoora. 221 

io whom it was apparently conceded. Pilame Talawe was 
the last of the direct branch of that family which exercised 
the privilege of girding on the royal sword at the inaugura- 
tion of the Kandian monarchs. 

Besides eight large tanks at Anurddhapoora, there are 
several of a smaller size built round with hewn stone ; and 
in the side of one of these a priest pointed out apartments, 
•cells which, he said, had been occupied by priests as places 
for contemplation when religion flourished and the tanks 
were full : one of these cells, which we examined, proved 
to be formed of five slabs, and its dimensions were twelve 
feet in length, eight feet in breadth, and five feet in height; 
the lowest stone, or floor of the cell, must have been nearly 
on a level with the water in the tank. We also saw many 
wells built round with stone ; one very large one near the 
Buwanwelli-saye is circular, and the size cUminishes with 
each course of masonry, so as to form steps for descending 
to the bottom in any direction. 

Near the footpath leading to the Jaitawanardmaya lies 
a vessel ornamented with pilasters cut in relievo; it is 
formed out of a single granite stone, and is ten feet long, 
six feet wide, and two feet deep. It was used to contain 
food for the priests. 

The following is translated from an ancient native 
4bccount of Anuradhapoora : — 

** The magnificent city of Anurddhapoora is refulgent 
from the numerous temples and palaces whose golden 
pinnacles glitter in the sky. The sides of its streets are 
strewed with black sand, and the middle is sprinkled with 
white sand ; they are spanned by arches '*' bearing flags of 
^old and silver ; on either side are vessels of the same 
precious metals, containing flowers; and in niches are 
statues holding lamps of great value. In the streets are 
multitudes of people armed with bows and arrows ; also 
men powerful as gods, who with their huge swords could 
<sut in sunder a tusk elephant at one blow. Elephants, 
horses, carts, and myriads of people are constantly passing 
and repassing : there are jugglers, dancers, and musicians 
of various nations, whose chanque-shells and other musical 

* Arches formed of areka-trees split and bent, or of some other 
pliable wood, were always used in decorating entrances and public 
buildings on days of ceremony or rejoicing ; but I have never seen an 
arch oi masonry in any Cingalese building of great antiquity. 



222 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

instruments are ornamented with gold. The distance fromr 
the principal gate to the sonth gate is four gaws (sixteen 
miles); and from the north gate to the south gate four 
gaws : the principal streets are Ghandrawakka-widiya, *^ 
Bajamaha-widiya, t Hinguruwak-widiya, and Mahawelli- 
widiya. $ In Ghandrawakka-widiya are 11,000 houses,, 
many of them being two storeys in height ; the smaller 
streets are innumerable. The palace has immense ranges 
of building, some of two, others of three storeys in height; 
and its subterranean apartments are of great extent" 

With the exception of the four principal streets, the 
others were built of perishable materials, and were named 
from the separate classes which inhabited them. The 
Ghandalas (scavengers and corpse-bearers) resided beyond: 
the limits of the city ; yet it was a girl of this caste that 
Prince Sdli, only son of Dootoogaimoonoo, married, and 
chose rather to resign all chance of succession to the throne 
than to part from his beauteous bride. The detailed 
account of Prince Sali's romantic attachment to Asoka 
Malla is probably less correct than a tradition preserved in 
Eotmaha, viz., that Sdli's mother was not of the royal 
race, but a woman of the Goyawanza (cultivator class), 
with whom Dootoogaimoonoo formed a connection at the 
time he was a fugitive in the mountainous district of Kot- 
malia, to which place he had fled to avoid the effects of his 
father's anger, and by which act he acquired the epithet of 
Dootoo, or the Disobedient, prefixed to his own name of 
Gaimoonoo. Dootoogaimoonoo forgave his son, and ad- 
mired the bride ; but appointed his brother, Saida-tissa, 
as successor to the throne, that the Mahawanzae (great 
solar dynasty) might be preserved in all its purity. 

The great extent of Anurddhapoora, covering within its 
walls a space of 256 square miles, will not give any just 
grounds on which to estimate the extent of its population; 
as tanks, fields, and even forests are mentioned as being 
within its limits. The number and magnitude of the tanka 
and temples constructed by the Kings Dootoogaimoonoo, 
who reigned from b.c. 164 to b.c. 140, Walagam-bahoo, 
who reigned from b.c. 89 to b.c. 77, and Mahasen, who- 
reigned from a.d. 275 to a.d. 802, are the best vouchers 
for the numerous population which at these periods existed. 

* Moon Street. f Great King Street. 

} Great Sandy Street, or from the Biver Mahawelli-ganga. 



The Ancient Capital^ Anurddhapoorar 225 

in Ceylon ; yet, as the tanks at least were formed by forced, 
labour, we cannot rate the wealth of the nation by the 
extent of its monuments. The public works of Prakrama- 
bahoo the First, who reigned from a.d. 1168 to 1186, prove 
that even then Ceylon had a much more numerous popula- 
tion than it now possesses ; and Cingalese accounts of 
that period state the number of males, exclusive of chil- 
dren, as amounting to 8,420,000. This number may be, 
and probably is, overrated ; but let those who doubt that 
an immense population formerly existed in Ceylon com- 
pare the prodigious bulk of the ancient monuments of. 
Anurddhapoora, Mdgam, and Polannarrua, with those 
erected by later kings of the island ; then let them com- 
pare singly the remains of the Kalaa tank,''' the Kaudela. 
tank,f or many others, with any or all the public works- 
accomplished in Ceylon for the last 600 years. In con- 
structing the immense embankments of these artificial 
lakes, labour has been profusely, often, from want of 
science, uselessly expended ; as I believe many of these 
great tanks, which are now in ruins, would, if repaired, 
be found inapplicable to the purposes of irrigation for 
which they were designed : that is, the extent of plain 
which could be cultivated by means of these reservoirs, 
would be of less value than the sums which it would be 
requisite to expend in repairing and maintaining the 
embankments. 

In Anurddhapoora, the only sacred buildings of modem 
date are a few small temples erected on the foundation& 
and from the materials of former structures; they are 
supported by wooden pillars, which, even in the same 
building, present a great variety of capitals, and perfect 
defiance of proportion. These mean temples, with their 
walls of clay and paltry supports, form a striking contrast 
to the granite columns, massive foundations, and stone 
pillars which still stand, or lie scattered in endless pro- 
fusion amidst the ruined heaps and proud remains of 
former ages. They serve to prove that Buddhism only 
clings with loosening grasp where it once held sovereign 
sway over mind and matter. 

In September, 1882, 1 again proceeded to Anuradhapoora, 

* The Kalaa tank was completed before a.d. 477. 
t The Kaudela tank is now an eztensiye plain between Minirie and. 
Eandely. 



*224 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

through Dambool, Manawewa, Kdgamma, near which 
are the ruins of the Nakha (finger-nail) ddgoba, and 
Tirapan. In several places, when we approached within 
twenty miles of the city, we perceived great heaps of 
fitones on the road-side: they were intended to com- 
memorate events which are long since forgotten ; but, 
nevertheless, every pilgrim adds a stone to these nameless 
cairns. About ten miles from Anurddhapoora, I sat down 
on the rocky bank of a very small pond in the Golon-oya 
forest : soon after, a native trader came up, and pointed to 
a spot near me, from whence, he said, his companion, only 
a few days before, had been dragged by a crocodile ; the 
nnfortimate man, while resting here during the heat of 
the day, had fallen asleep close to the water, and in this 
state was seized by the reptile. My informant, having 
procured assistance from a village some miles off, had 
attempted to recover the body of his companion ; but was 
imsuccessful, as it was found that the pond communicated 
with an underground cavern. I emerged from this forest 
upon the plains around the Nuwarawewa (city lake), 
which at this time contained but a little water in detached 
pools ; these were surrounded, almost covered, by a won- 
drous assemblage of creatures, from the elephant and 
buffalo, pelican, flamingo, and peacock, crocodile, and 
cobragoya, down through innumerable varieties of the 
animated creation: in the background, the crumbling 
spires of Anurddhapoora appeared over the wooded em- 
bankment of this artificial lake. I had supplied myself 
and my followers with abundance of pea-fowl, which 
were to be met with in numbers at every open space 
where water was to be found ; and, on first entering one 
of these glades, I have seen twenty of them within a 
space of 100 yards in diameter. Pea-fowl are naturally 
wary; and if it is a place where they have been occa- 
sionally i disturbed, it requires great caution to ensure 
getting near enough to shoot them. The morning is the 
best time for pea-fowl shooting, as in the evening they 
keep near the edge of the jungle, and in the forenoon 
they retire to some thick dark copse, generally over- 
hanging water, and there rest during the heat of the day ; 
it is at this time that the natives, who never throw away 
a shot, usually kill them at roost. 

Since my former visit in 1828, all the dagobas had 



Visit to Kandy. 225 

sofifered some diminution, in consequence of the heavy 
rains which had fallen in January, 1829 ; and the whole 
of the Ahhdyagiri had been cleared from jungle by a 
priest, whose zeal in the difficult and dangerous task had 
been nearly recompensed with martyrdom, a fragment of 
the spire having fallen on and severely injured this pious 
desecrater of the picturesque. The season had been par- 
ticularly dry, and the foliage of those trees which grew 
on rocky ground presented all the variety of an English 
autumn; however, the change of the monsoon was ap- 
proaching, and heavy rain fell during the night of my 
arrival. At daybreak next morning I ascended on the 
ruins of Mirisiwettiya, and found the forest-plains of this 
district shrouded by mist and rising clouds ; but, — 

" Though the loitering vapour braved 
The gentle breeze, yet oft it waved 
Its mantle's dewy fold," 

and magnified forms of mount -like sepulchres were 
shadowed on the drear expanse. As the sun arose behind 
the rock of Mehintalai, the ** silver-mist " was dissipated 
in small clouds, or fell in glittering drops : all was damp, 
vast, and silent, as if the waves of oblivion had only now 
rolled back from the tombs of antediluvian giants; and 
the half-formed rainbow, which glanced amid these monu- 
ments, was the first which had brightened the earth, or 
gladdened the remnants of a perished race. 



[No. n.— CHAPTER XIH.] 

VISIT TO KANDY.*— MOEAL LAWS OP 
GAUTAMA BUDDHA. 

The rifled nm, the violated moond. — ^Bybon. 

Abstain from all sin, acquire all virtue, repress thine own heart ; 
this is Buddha's injunction. 

Tenets ofBuddhisniy by Eitulgaicma Unnanse. 

In the month of May, 1828, 1 proceeded to Kandy, and 
witnessed that brilliant Baddhist festival, the exhibition 

* For the latest account of Kandy see Burrows* " Guide," pub- 
lished by A. M. & J. Ferguson. 

16 



226 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

of tbe Dalada (tooth of Buddha) ; an expiring blaze of 
the ancient worship of Ceylon, whose beams even then 
gleamed flickering and unstable, and will suddenly sink 
in darkness, or surely and gradually fade before a brighter 
light. From one district, at least, I know the numbers 
who attended at this Dalada Puja were procured by com- 
pulsion more than attracted by devotion ; and that it was 
the dread of present punishment, not the hope of spiritual 
benefit, by which they were collected. I anticipate that 
Buddhism, shorn of its splendour, unaided by . authority, 
and torn by internal dissension, will not long have power 
to retain even its present slight control over the actions 
of its votaries by the mere excellence of its moral laws, 
and that it will fall into disuse before Christianity is 
prepared to step into its place, which for a time will be 
occupied by those vile superstitions and demon-worship 
to which the Cingalese are so prone. 

Fifty-three years had elapsed since the King Kirti Sri 
had openly displayed the rehc ; and from the revolutions 
which had since taken place in the country, but few 
people remembered the ceremony, and still fewer had 
seen the Dalada, which they believed to be the most 
sacred thing on earth, and that only to see it proved their 
former merits by their present good fortune. 

On the 29th of May, J 828, the three larger cases having 
previously been removed, the relic contained in the three 
inner caskets was placed on the back of an elephant 
richly caparisoned : over it was the Eansiwige, a small 
octagonal cupola, the top of which was composed of 
alternate plain and gilt silver plates, supported by silver 
pillars. When the elephant appeared coming out of the 
temple-gate, two lines of magnificent elephants, forming 
a double line in front of the entrance, knelt down and 
thus remained; while the multitude of people, joining 
the points of their fingers, raised their arms above their 
heads, and then bent forward, at the same time uttering 
in full, deep tones the shout of ** Sadhu : " this, joined and 
increased by those at a distance, swelled into a grand and 
solemn sound of adoration. The elephant bearing the 
relic, followed by the establishments of the temples with 
their elephants, also those of the chiefs, after proceeding 
through the principal streets of the town, returned to the 
great bungaloe : here the first Adikar removed the relic 



Visit to Kandy. 227 

from- the back of the elephant, and conveyed it to the 
temporary altar on which it was to be exhibited. The 
rich hangings were now closed around the altar, and the 
three inner cases opened in presence of Sir Edward 
Barnes, the Governor. The drapery being again thrown 
open, disclosed the tooth placed on a gold lotus-flower, 
which stood on a silver table: this was covered with 
the different cases of the relic, various gold articles and 
antique jewellery, the offerings of former devotees. 

Whether prompted by their own feelings, or impelled 
by more weighty reasons to attend at this exhibition, still 
the relic was evidently an object of intense veneration to 
all the assembled Buddhists, and by those of the Kandian 
provinces it is considered the palladium of their country ; 
they also believe the sovereign power of the island is 
attached to its possessors. It is a piece of discoloured, 
ivory, slightly curved, nearly two inches in length, and 
one inch in diameter at the base ; from thence to the 
other extremity, which is rounded and blunt, it consider- 
ably decreases in size. The Dalada, as we find in very 
ancient details of its adventures, was discoloured when it 
arrived in Ceylon : that a relic of Gautama should fade 
or decay was at the time urged as an argument against 
its authenticity; but a miracle settled the dispute, and 
silenced sceptics. 

The sanctuary of this relic is a small chamber in the 
temple attached to the palace of the Kandian kings ; and 
there the six cases in which it is enshrined are placed on 
a silver table hung round with rich brocades. The largest 
or outside cover of these carandus (caskets) is five feet in 
height, formed of silver gilt, and shaped in the form of a 
dAgoba : * the same form is preserved in the five inner 
cases, which are of gold ; two of them, moreover, being 
inlaid with rubies and other precious stonfes. The outer 
case is decorated with many gold ornaments and jewels, 
which have been offered to the relic, and serve to em- 
bellish its shrine. In front of the silver altar on which 
the tooth was exposed a plain table was placed ; to this 
the people approached one at a time, and having seen the 
Dalada and deposited their gifts, they prostrated them- 
selves, then passed on and made room for others. The 

* The bell-shaped bulldiDgs raised oyer the relics of Buddha. 



228 Ceylon in the Juihilee Year. 

offerings consisted of things the most heterogeneons : 
gold chains and gold ornaments : gold, silver, and copper 
coins of all denominations; cloths, priest's vestments, 
flowers, sugar, areka-nuts, hetel-leaves. The Dalada was 
exhibited and the offerings continued for three successive 
days. On the second day some wretched specimens of 
the science of defence were exhibited before the Governor, 
both with fists and also with wooden swords and targets : 
on the fourth night there was a display of native fire- 
works, well-made and skilfully managed. Night and day, 
without intermission, during the continuance of this 
festival, there was kept up a continual din of tom-toms, 
and sounding of Kandian pipes and chanque-shells. The 
Kandian pipe is a musictd instrument in power and 
melody nearly resembling a penny whistle: but the 
chanque is a shell with a mouth-piece attached, and, 
under the influence of powerful lungs, is a most efficient 
instrument for producing a noise which was called music ; 
its tones varying between the bellowings of a chained 
bull and the howling of a forsaken dog. I presume the 
natives consider these sounds peculiarly adapted for their 
sacred music, as such instruments are to be found in all 
temples, and may be heard at all hours, to the dire annoy- 
ance of any European who attempts to sleep in their 
neighbourhood. 

The principal temporary building was 250 feet in length, 
of proportionate breadth, and supported by six lines of 
pillars. It was under this that the tooth was exhibited ; 
and the whole was ornamented with palm-branches, 
plantain-trees, fruit, and flowers : so gracefully were these 
disposed, that the columns in the variety of their decora- 
tions, and some even in unity of effect, presented combi- 
nations which, if transferred to stone, would rival any 
specimen of elaborate Corinthian architecture. In the 
brilliant pageantry of this festival, the rich altar and 
resplendent ornaments of the relic, the great size and 
elegant decorations of the temporary buildmgs, the pecu- 
liar and picturesque dresses of the chiefs, the majestic 
elephants, and dense mass of people, threw an air of 
imposing grandeur over the spectacle, to which the old 
temples, sacred trees, and the wild and beautiful scenery 
around the Kandian capital formed an appropriate land- 
scape. These combinations were rendered still more 



Visit to Kdndy. 229 

impressive by the disturbed state of the elements ; for an 
extraordinary gloom and tempestnons weather continued 
during the whole time of the exhibition, and the torrents of 
rain which fell at that time caused the loss of many lives, 
and destroyed much property, in various parts of the 
island. 

3^ :ic :|: i|c Jf; )f; 

The town of Kandy is judiciously planned, and the 
present regular arrangement of the streets was marked 
out by the Adikars under the direction of the king ; the 
streets all run in straight lines, but do not cross at right 
angles. It is situated on an angular piece of ground, 
with the base resting on two lakes which were formed by 
the late king. The buildings remaining from the time of 
the native dynasty are several temples of Buddha and 
two colleges, at one of which every Kandian priest ought 
to be ordained : there are also temples to the gods Ndta, 
Vishnu, Katragamma, and the goddess Patine ; but there 
is nothing worthy of remark either in their architecture or 
decorations. 

In the audience-hall, now used as a court-house, are 
some well-carved pillars of halmila wood : the trees from 
which they were formed were cut and squared near 
Nalande; from thence they were dragged over a hilly 
country, and up a steep mountain, the whole distance 
being upwards of thirty miles. The other remains of 
the palace and buildings inhabited by the royal establisL- 
ment were, without exception, mean, and equally destitute 
of internal comfort and external beauty ; the most striking 
object is a low octagonal tower with a peaked roof, from 
a balcony in which the king exhibited himself on occa- 
sions of public festivity. 

Wikrama Bahoo the Third, who reigned from a.d. 1371 
to A. D. 1878, was the first monarch who settled himself even 
temporarily at Kandy, then called, from a large rock 
which projects from the hill above the old palace, Sen- 
gadda-galla-nuvara ; but it did not become the permanent 
capital of the interior until the reign of Wimala Dharma, 
which commenced a.d. 1592, and it continued the chief 
city until the native Government fell before the British 
power in 1815. 

The burial-ground of the Eandian kings cannot be 
viewed without exciting reflections on the revolutions 



230 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

which alike occur to man*s estate and the most ancient 
monarchies* Ere the last of one of the longest lines of 
kings which authentic history records had so far expiated 
his crimes, and received his measure of earthly retribution 
for the cruelties he had inflicted, by suffering a long im- 
prisonment and an exile's death, the solid tombs of his 
predecessors were ransacked by the hands of avarice, or 
riven in sunder and ruined by the sweUing roots of sacred 
trees. This hallowed spot, where the funeral piles were 
raised, the last grand solemn rites performed, and the last 
of earthly pomp and splendour was shown to the remains 
'' of the race of the sun " and the rulers of the land, is 
now a wilderness, where decay revels and rushes rapidly 
on beneath dank vegetation and a gloomy shade. The 
tomb of Eaja Singha, the tyrant who reigned during 
Knox's captivity in the seventeenth century, was nearly 
perfect, and preserved its shape in May, 1828; that of 
Eirti Sri was then entire. In 1887 the former was a 
heap of rubbish, from which the stones had been removed ; 
and the beautiful proportions, even the general form of 
the latter, could no longer be traced. Hopes of plunder 
or unmeaning wantonness, at the time when Kandy was 
entered by the British, precipitated tbe fate of these 
monuments : neglected as they now are, there is nothing 
to retard it ; and a few years will show, mingled in one 
common mould, the crumbling wreck of the tombs and 
the dust of their royal tenants. 

During the continuance of the Dalada festival, the 
priests of Buddha, in dififerent communities, headed by 
the seniors of their establishments, seemed to think it 
incumbent upon them to perambulate the town with their 
begging dishes, and to go through the ceremony of re- 
ceiving alms. These parties moved on slowly with their 
fans before their faces, occasionally halting to receive 
whatever food was offered to them, but not asking for it. 
It appeared to me that this was evidently more of a tem- 
porary penance than a regular practice, although to live 
by alms is enjoined by the rules of their order. Their 
sleek faces and sly looks also spoke of better fare procured 
elsewhere with less trouble and more certainty than wan- 
dering in heavy rain through Kandy, and waiting for 
supplies from the more devout portion of those professing 
the Buddhist religion. 



Kandian Festivals. 231 

[No. ni.— CHAPTER XIV.] 

KANDIAN FESTIVALS. 

Besides the Dalada Puja, which, as I have already stated, 
was a rare occurrence, five annual festivals were celebrated 
by the king and chiefs in Kandy, with all the pomp and 
splendour that their circumstances could afford, or custom 
allow them to extort from those under their control. 
Although ordained for religion, and in honour of the gods, 
the festivals were also a source of profit to the native 
kings, and a cherished rule of their policy. As the chiefs 
were obliged to attend, their periodical visits enabled the 
king to levy exactions on the estate, or to secure the 
person of any influential or turbulent headman, who in 
his own district might have braved the power of the king 
and defied arrest. These five festivals are still kept up ; 
and although they are now only tolerated, not encouraged, 
and without the show of regal state or compulsory attend- 
ance, still the Peraherra is an imposing spectacle. 

The festival of the New Year is in April, and at that 
time the Cingalese indulge in the few amusements which 
they enjoy, and in such luxuries as they can afford » 
Before New Year's Day every individual procures from 
an astrologer a writing, fixing the fortunate hours of the 
approaching year on which to commence duties or cere- 
monies ; and to the most minute points of these instruc- 
tions he religiously adheres, believing that even an in- 
voluntary omission of any prescribed act at the appointed 
moment would render him liable to misfortunes. The 
following is an abridgment, omitting the astrological lore, 
of one of the annual documents, prepared for my benefit 
by the astrologer of Mdtale, who also took care to inform 
me of all eclipses, and to give me special instructions 
in writing how to avoid those misfortunes which they 
might occasion. ** The emblem of the approaching year 
will be a red lion seated erect on a horse, and proceeding 
from an aperture resembling the mouth of a horse ; this 
will be at the commencement of the year, nine hours and 
fifty-four minutes after sunset : at this fortunate moment 
milk should be boiled at each of the four sides of the 
house." Next day I was directed to look to the north 
while dimbul-leaves were suspended over my head, a.nd 



232 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

with kolon-leaves placed under my feet; then, having 
anointed myself with different juices and aromatic drugs, 
I was to dress myself in perfumed clothes of red, white, 
and blue colours ; then to look to the south, and cause fire 
to be lighted and cooking to begin. On the second day, 
at two hours and a half after sunrise, I was to commence 
eating victuals prepared with pounded salt and curdled 
milk. At twenty-seven hours,* while looking to the ea!«t, 
I was recommended to begin business by paying or receiving 
money. The whole concluded with a prediction, that, 
from the situation of the planets and other cogent reasons, 
I might expect both good and evil to happen during the 
year which was about to commence. 

The second festival was held in the month of May, and 
was principally remarkable as being more essentially 
Buddhist than any of the others. During this festival 
such Samanairia priests as passed their examinations re- 
ceived upasampada (ordination). 

The third festival, called by pre-eminence Peraherra 
(the procession), commenced with the new moon, and 
continued until the full moon in July ; sometimes longer, 
if the procession was interrupted by meeting with a dead 
body of any animal, or any object considered unclean. 
The procession regularly increased in splendour every 
night until the last ; at which time it was very imposing, 
from the multitude of people, rich dresses, brilliant lights, 
and large elephants. The arms and other relics of the 
gods were carried either on elephants or in palanquins ; 
and, on the last night, the casket containg the Dalada, 
borne by an elephant, accompanied the procession to the 
limits of the town, and rested at the Gedig^ wihare, near 
the tombs of the kings, whilst the remainder of the pro- 
cession passed on to the Mahawelli-ganga at Ganorooa, 
three miles from Kandy. There the four Kapuralls of 
the temples of Yishnu, Nata, Katragamma, and Patine 
embarked on the river in ornamented canoes, and awaited 
the first dawn of day ; then, drawing a circle in the water 
with their golden swords, they filled pitchers of holy 
water from within the magic ring, and the procession re- 
turned to the city. The different chiefs of districts and 
temples, with their elephants and followers, were then 

t The Cingalese divide their day into sixty hoars of sixty minutes 
each. 



Kandian Festivals. 238 

permitted to return to their provinces : and there, at some 
particular temples, the same procession on a limited scale 
took place. 

The fourth festival, called, the Festival of Lamps, was 
celebrated on the day before full moon in November : the 
whole town was illuminated on this occasion; and the 
immense number of niches alongside of the canal in front 
of the palace, as well as in the side of the lake, being filled 
with lamps, had a brilliant effect from the reflections in 
the water. 

The fifth festival was called the Festival of New Bice. 
It was held in January, and appears to have been intended 
as a propitiatory offering at the commencement of the 
maha (great) harvest; for the Cingalese, judging from 
their own feelings, consider that an offering at the com- 
mencement is more likely to secure favour than an ex- 
pected thanksgiving at the end of an undertaking. 

The gods to whom these processions are principally 
dedicated are, Saman (Vishnu), Nata, Katragamma, and 
the goddess Patine. Wibhisand, who is retained as a 
god at Kellania and in the vicinity of Colombo, is never 
heard of in Kandy. Vishnu is worshipped in his form 
of Bamachandra, and his statues are painted blue. Of 
Nata*s history I could learn nothing with certainty ; his 
statues are painted white. Katragamma is the same as 
Kartickya (Mars), and has received the name by which 
he is now worshipped in Ceylon from the place where his 
principal temple is situated, which is at the village of 
Katragamma, at the south-east of the island. He is more 
feared than the other gods ; and many of his votaries lose 
their health, and even their lives, in a pilgrimage through 
the unhealthy country which surrounds his malignant 
shrine. His priests are Brahmins ; and in the rebellion 
of 1818 they were the zealous assistants of the pretender 
who called himself king, and was the puppet of the rebel 
chief Kaepitapola. 

The goddess Patine is, I believe, the same as Durga, 
and is invoked to protect her votaries from small-pox. 

Wibhisana was the brother of Bawana; and having 
MsiBted Bama in his invasion of the island, was, on the 
defeat and death of Bawana, placed on the throne of 
Cfarrlon, and reigned at Kellania. 

To tixe list of gods the name of Mahasen (commonly 



234 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

called Minneria-deyo) may be added, who, in the vicinity 
of Minneria, and in several parts of Matale, where tem- 
ples have been reared to him, maintains his reputation as 
well as Vishnu or any of the more ancient and generally 
acknowledged deities. As Mahasen is a name of Katra- 
gamma as well as of the great Cingalese King, it is diffi- 
cult to say whether these temples were originally dedicated 
to him ; but I presume they were, and that King Mahasen 
has no legitimate claim to deification. However, in the 
temples of Mahasen the same warlike furniture may be 
found as in those of other gods ; and the gigantic tanks 
and bridges formed under his superintendence give him a 
better claim to immortal gratitude than those who are 
only known by name as kings, heroes and gods, although 
they may have conferred similar benefits on earlier ages. 

When Gautama Buddha visited Ceylon, Saman (Vishnu) 
appears to have been particularly worshipped, also Eiswara 
and Wibhisana ; and offerings were made to planets, an- 
cestors, and demons. 

The powers and attributes of the gods and demons of 
the Cingalese are not well defined; there are vices and 
crimes charged in the history of the gods, while the devils 
seem to respect the virtues which they do not practise, 
and their forbearance must be purchased by offerings and 
propitiatory ceremonies. The wild and wooded nature of 
the island, and the now thinly- scattered population, natu- 
rally tend to superstition ; and it may be perceived by the 
native histories, that when the country was most pros- 
perous and populous, the Buddhist religion was maintained 
in the greatest purity. 

In the temples of the gods there is always some relic, 
generally connected with arms, such as bows, spears, or 
arrows ; and if any person wished to erect a temple, he, 
by pretended inspiration, astrology, or other deception, 
proceeded to discover, with much ceremony and mystery, 
an arrow of the god, or some such rehc, which had been 
hid in the spot selected for the building. The will of the 
god having been thus miraculously ascertained, the work 
was commenced; and, by permission of the king, land 
might be dedicated to the establishment, and have the 
same privileges as a Buddhist temple. The Kapuralls, or 
priests of a god's temple, require no other qualification 
than having sufficient cunning to dupe the superstitious, 



Kandian Festivals. 235 

and bodily strength enough to enable them to go through 
the violent exertions and vile contortions which they 
exhibit, and denominate dancing and inspiration. The 
performance of all these ceremonies is accompanied by 
tom-toms, pipes, chanque-shells, halamba (hollow metal 
rings), and other noises, which they denominate musical. 
Over the principal temples are placed laymen of rank, 
who have charge of the revenues and are guardians of the 
relics ; these chiefs do not take any part in the laborious 
exertions and insane excitement which, in this superstition, 
are supposed to propitiate the spirit that is invoked. 

I discovered a temple in Mdtal^ to the Abudha Deiyo 
(unknown god), f and found he was patron of secret villainy 
(Mercury). 

The images of the gods are only formed of plaster and 
brick, neither is their workmanship or design worthy of 
better materials ; and if this worship and its idols were to 
disappear, the arts would have no cause to mourn, and 
morahtv might rejoice at the extinction of an impure 
superstition, which has much to debase and nothing to 
elevate its votaries. 



* 



f Acts zvii. 23. 



APPENDIX in. 

CHKISTIANITY IN CEYLON. 

Tennent says in his ** History of Ceylon " that ** the 
fanatical propagandism of the Portuguese reared for 
itself a monument in the abiding and expanding influence 
of the Boman Catholic faith. This flourished in every 
province and hamlet where it was implanted by the 
Franciscans, whilst the doctrines of the Keformed Church 
of Holland, never preached beyond the walls of the 
fortresses, are now extinct throughout the island, with the 
exception of an expiring community at Colombo.** This 
latter statement is exaggerated; the Wolfendahl Dutch 
Reformed Church in Colombo is a flourishing community, 
albeit its services are in English, and its chaplain is 
Irish Presbyterian. The same may be said of the Galle 
Church, ministered to by a parson of the Church of 
Scotland, and there are also small bodies of adherents in 
Jaffna and Matara. What made the Franciscans so suc- 
cessful was their easy adaptation of the Eoman Catholic 
faith as a companion to, instead of opponent of, Buddhism, 
and their giving long honorific Portuguese names to the 
natives in baptism, which the latter gladly added to 
their Sinhalese names, retaining them for three centuries 
to this day, though many of them now make no profession 
of any form of Christianity. When the Dutch seized the 
maritime provinces, many of the Portuguese with their 
Eoman Catholic priests settled in villages within the 
territory of the Kandian king. Seven hundred of them in 
this way at Buanwela. No doubt much mixture of races 
took place ; for even Dutch soldiers were permitted to 
marry Sinhalese women, provided the latter professed 



Christianity in Ceylon. 237 

Ghristiftnity. Money was readily paid by the Sinhalese 
to both the Portuguese and Dutch for the privilege of 
prefixing Don to their names. 

The Roman Catholic Missions have prospered under the 
tolerant British rule in Ceylon, and they number by far the 
largest body of Christians, the old Portuguese Mission 
being lately transferred from the care of the Archbishop of 
Goa to that of the newly- appointed Archbishop of Ceylon, 
who has three bishops under him at Colombo, Kandy, and 
Jafiha. There is a large number of priests and teachers ; 
and educational establishments (notably St. Benedict*s) 
are maintained at Colombo, as well as at Kandy and 
Jaffna. 

The Anglican Church has had a bishop of Colombo 
since 1845, who has the oversight of the chaplains and 
clergymen settled over regular English congregations as 
well as of the agents of the Society for the Propagation 
of the Gospel, and in a less degree of the agents of the 
Church Missionary Society. The latter have a Conference 
of their own to settle the affairs and arrangements of 
their Mission. But all branches of the Anglican Church 
in the island have united through representatives to 
support a Synod necessitated by the disendowment and 
disestabUshment of both the Episcopal and Presbjterian 
chaplains in Ceylon which was consummated between 1881 
and 1886, the life claims of all incumbents in office before 
the earlier year being reserved. St. Thomas's College, 
Colombo, is a very notable and useful educational insti- 
tution in connection with the Anglican Church. 

Our estimate of the number of Christians in Ceylon is 
from 9 to 10 per cent of the total population, as follows : 

Total population, viz., 2,900,000. 

Total of Christians, about 290,000, distributed as follows: 

The Bomanists with 220,000 

The Episcopalians with 25,000 

The Presbyterians and Congregationalists with 14,000 

The Wesleyans with 23,000 

The Baptists with 8,000 

The whole Protestant community with ... 70,000 
We are, however, most interested in the history and 



288 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

operations of Evangelical Missions at work in Ceylon. 
The Baptist Mission agents came first, arriving in 1812; 
the Wesley an s in 1814 ; the agents of the American 
Home and Foreign Mission in 1816 ; and the Church 
Mission in 1818 ; while a number of agents of General 
Booth's Salvation Army under " Major " Tucker (formerly 
Commissioner in the Indian Civil Service) arrived in 
1885-6. 



PEOGEESS OF MISSION WOEK IN CEYLON. 

I. — The work of the American Mission has been confined 
to stations in the densely-populated Jaffna Peninsula, 
where a succession of godly, devoted men and women have 
done an immense amount of good ; more of the agents of 
this society, perhaps, than of any English Society have lived 
and died among the Tamil people whom they had come 
from the far West to instruct and evangelize. The work 
done in female education has been especially valuable ; 
while Dr. Green's Medical Class of native students, and 
his compilations and translations of medical works into 
Tamil have been productive of great benefit to the whole 
island. A Christian College, and Industrial Technical 
Schools for the Jaffnese, are among the fruits of the 
Mission. Among the honoured names of the agents are 
Father and Mrs. Spaulding, Dr. Poor, Miss Agnew, 
Messrs. and Mesdames Saunders, Smith, Rowlands, 
Hastings, &c. An interesting feature of this Mission is 
the succession of father and son in carrying on the work. 

II. — The history of The Church Mission in Ceylon up to 
1868 is recorded in a little Jubilee Memorial volume by 
Eev. J. I. Jones. The principal work of the Society has 
been in the vicinity of Colombo and Cotta, in Kandy, in 
the southern province at Baddegama, in Kurnnegala, 
and itinerary work throughout the Central and parts of 
the North- Western, North- Central, and Western provinces. 
This refers to the Sinhalese Mission. The Tamil Mission 
has an agency in the Jaffna Peninsula. Churches and 
congregations with native pastors, boarding schools for 
girls as well as boys, vernacular and Enghsh schook, a 



Progress of Mission Work in Ceylon. 239 

Gkristian college, and theological and normal classes, all 
form features of the Sinhalese and Tamil Missions as seen 
in the present day ; and a large number of staunch Chris- 
tian families at each station testify to the good work done 
through the Church Missionary Society. All the native 
pastors hav(B their salaries provided through native Church 
Councils, which receive a grant-in-aid from the Home 
Committee of an annually diminishing amount, the 
saving being given to evangelistic work. The Kev. 
William Oakley, of this Mission, hved and worked in 
the island, without ever returning to England, for fifty- 
two years, until his death as a retired missionary in 
Nuwera Eliya in 1886. Much good literary and educa- 
tional as well as evangelistic work has been done by Church 
missionaries, especially in connection with the language ; 
the names of Lambrick, Ward, Selkirk, Trimnell, Marsh, 
Fenn, Jones, and Coles being familiar in this connec- 
tion. An interesting branch is the Tamil Coolie Mis- 
sion, which is under the ministerial charge of Church 
missionaries, with catechists and schoolmasters, assisted 
by a lay and undenominational committee from among the 
planters and merchants, who are responsible for the funds, 
all save the salaries of the missionaries, which are pro- 
vided by the home committee. The coolies on the estates 
scattered all over the hill country are the objects of the 
Mission's teaching and care, and on many plantations 
schools are opened for the instruction of the children. 

Extracts from the Proceedings at the Annual MeetingSy held 
in 1881, of the Baptist and Wesley an Missionary Societies 
in Ceylon, 

lit — The Baptist Mission. — The Chairman (Mr. J. 
Ferguson) said they had now receiyed the reports for the 
three divisions of the Baptist Mission in Ceylon. They 
were probably famiUar with the districts to which those 
reports referred. Mr. Waldock's district had its centre in 
the neighbourhood of the Kelani river, while that of Mr. 
Carter was situated on the largest river in the island, and 
Mr. Pigott, apparently following up the inclination of the 
Baptist Mission to work along great rivers, had gone up 
to the headwaters of the Kelani and Kalu Gangas. The 
Sabaragamuwa district, as they knew, was part of the 



240 Ceylon in the Juhilee Year. 

Mission Extension work that some years ago excited so 
much interest. It was very satisfactory to feel now, that 
the three Evangelistic missions (the Wesleyan, Church, 
and Baptist) cover the whole ground, at least in nominal 
occupation, in South Ceylon, and supplement each other 
in the districts they occupy. The Baptist Mission in 
Saharagamuwa and the Church Mission in Uva adjoin 
each other, while the Wesleyan Mission, having gone 
round the coast to Hambantota, has met with the work of 
its sister mission in Batticaloa, so that there is now no 
large district without at least being visited by a European 
missionary, and receiving attention from une or other of 
the three Evangelistic missions referred to. 

In regard to the small accession of numbers reported, he 
would call attention to one fact which should be remem- 
bered, and which was stated on the authority of Sir 
Emerson Tennent, who was a very close observer. Sir 
Emerson, in giving evidence at home, stated that there 
were no missionaries in Ceylon so rigid in making up their 
returns of members as the Baptist missionaries. There- 
fore, although the figures were small, they indicated a 
much larger number of people under the influence of the 
mission. He had occasion lately, in the course of his 
daily work elsewhere, to look over some of the returns for 
forty years back of that and other missions, and he found 
that in South Ceylon there were probably 11,000 people 
under the influence of the Church, Wesleyan, and Baptist 
Missions about the year 1850. In 1860 that number had 
increased to 14,000 ; and in 1870 to 18,000 ; while now 
it could not be less than 25,000. About twenty years 
ago in makmg up the returns, before the first census was 
taken, it was estimated that the total Protestant popula- 
tion of Ceylon numbered 40,000. The census was taken 
in 1871, and the calculations then made went on to show 
that there were 54,000 Protestants, and there would be 
much reason for disappointment if the census that is 
shortly to be taken does not indicate that that number 
had increased to 70,000.* No doubt 70,000 Protestant 
Christians and 200,000 Eoman Catholics would seem a 
small number out of 2,750,000 — only ten per cent., 

* In the oensas of Febraary, 1881, the Christian population is 
given at 268,000 ; of whom 200,000 were probably Homan Catholics 
and 68,000 Protestants. 



Progress of Mission Work in Ceylon. 241 

but if we compare this result with what has been done 
in India — where the Christian population was not even 
one per cent. — we ought, not only to feel satisfied, 
but also most thankful for what has been accomplished. 
The people of this island needed Christianity now as 
much as in the time of Mr. Daniel, who said that the 
more he saw of the Sinhalese idolaters, the more he 
realized how correctly the 1st chapter of St. Paul's Epistle 
to the Ilomans described their condition. He was sure, 
from the reports that had been read, that the work of the 
Baptist Mission was one that would commend itself to the 
. sympathies and support of all present. 

IV. — The Wbsleyan Mission. — The Chairman (Mr. J. 
Ferguson) said they had heard a clear and succinct 
report. For nearly twenty-one years now, he had 
watched the operations of the Wesleyan Mi^^sion in South 
Ceylon, and he had, during that time, been personally 
acquainted with all the Society's local European agents, 
and with a considerable number of the native agents, 
including among the former the revered Messrs. Gogerly 
and Spence Hardy. He had early formed a very high 
opinion of the admirable system under which this Mission 
in South Ceylon was organized and worked, and he had 
noted, year by year, the indefatigable labours of the mis- 
sionaries for the good of the people and the furtherance of 
a knowledge of the gospel. 

He would point out that the Mission in South Ceylon is 
singularly complete in embracing all classes of the popula- 
tion and every department of labour. The European and 
Eurasian adherents have the gospel preached to them in 
English, and those who speak Portuguese are not 
forgotten ; while the great work is of course that among 
the Sinhalese and Tamils ; so that the South Ceylon 
Wesleyan Mission was among the most extensive and 
complete in the island, or, perhaps, in any country where 
missions are found. The evangelistic labours of its 
agents — ^preaching the gospel direct to the people — had 
ever been one of the great objects of the Wesleyan Mis- 
sionary Society, and he (the speaker) would never forget 
what he heard the Rev. Spence Hardy say on one occasion 
from that platform, that, in his experience, the most 
potent means, under God*s guidance, of converting the 

17 



242 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

Sinhalese Baddhists was for the European missionary, 
possessed of a thorough command of the vernacular, to go 
right into the villages and to preach the gospel direct to 
the people. But the missionaries had not forgotten other 
departments of great importance — that of training the 
children, who would otherwise be left to grow up in 
ignorance, and be unable to read the gospel in their own 
language. 

Then again, a distinguishing feature of the work of the 
agents of the Society had been found in the literature 
penned for the Sinhalese, and about their country and 
religions. He had only to mention a few names that 
would be familiar as the authors of most valuable and 
learned works, in Clough, Callaway, Gogerly, * Spence 
Hardy, David de Silva, not to mention any of the present 
day. Hardy's ** Jubilee Memorials " was one of the most 
charming books ever published with the Story of Missions, 
or, indeed, in connection with Ceylon. In that book Mr. 
Hardy gives the statistics of the Mission for the year 
1868, and they had seen the report for 1881 ; so that 
there had elapsed an interval of eighteen years. 

Very recently there appeared in the London Times a 
letter filling three or four columns in large type, attacking 
missions and missionaries. The writer made most sweep- 
ing statements. He seemed to regard it as an admitted 
fact that there were no conversions. Let us see the 
advance in eighteen years in South Ceylon in this Wes- 
leyan Mission, which was as follows : — 

1863. 1881. 

44 Native Ministers and Catechists . . . . 122 

72 Churches and other places of worship . . 104 

1,577 Communicants . . . . . . . . 2,609 

3,789 Adherents .. .. .. .. 6,061 

2,141 Boys in Day Schools .. .. .. 4,643 

1,037 Girls in Day Schools . . . . . . 2,486 

— Sunday Scholars . . . . . . 4,820 

He would like the anti-mission correspondent to consider 
what these figures for one limited section of the Eastern 
mission-field meant : but there was another rough-and- 
ready test which men of the world and business men, who 
. believe in the practice of one — 

Who very wisely would lay forth 
No more upon it than *twas worth, — 



Progress of Mission Work in Ceylon. !243 

would recognize, namely, the oontributions gathered in 
locally; and these, chiefly from natives, in 1863 were 
given by Mr. Hardy at Bs.4,520 ; while the total of local 
contributions in last yearns report was Bs.89,825. The 
Sinhalese and Tamils, any more than other people, do 
not pay for what they do not value. Bemembering that 
we are not yet in the seventieth year of the Mission, it 
might fairly be anticipated that ere long the people will 
be won to Christianity, not in an arithmetical, but in a 
geometrical progression in Ceylon as well as India. A 
very important step was taken some years ago in con- 
nexion with the extension of the work of the Wesleyan, 
the Church, and the Baptist Societies in South Ceylon, 
in which he (the Chairman) took some part. Nominally, 
the country was now covered by the three Evangelical 
bodies, but large districts and numerous villages had yet to 
have the gospel preached in them. Much remained to be 
done, and now that the schoolmaster was abroad in the 
land, it especially devolved on all Christians to follow up 
secular by moral and religious teaching. The Buddhists 
of China, Siam, and Burmah looked to Ceylon as the 
sacred home of their religion. The central position of 
the island added to its importance as a mission field; 
educated Ceylonese young men were going forth as medical 
assistants, surveyors, and in other capacities, to earn a 
livelihood in other parts of the world ; while^ again, the 
masses were about to follow, 500 Sinhalese now waiting 
to be transferred to Queensland. It behoved them to do 
all in their power to send forth good men and true, some, 
if not all, of whom might become teachers of the gospel 
in their turn. For this reason, among others, this Society 
deserved the hearty support of all who had the highest 
interests of the people at heart. 

The following remarks are taken from an address 
by Mr. John Ferguson, at a Breakfast Meeting of the 
Wesleyan Missionary Society at Exeter Hall, in May, 1884 : 

** There are no more valuable Christian missions in 
the world than those which have settled in Ceylon. 
Geographically, Ceylon is the centre of the Eastern world. 
With reference to Asia, it has become very much what 
England has been so long in relation to Europe and the 
Western world. Christianity and education have made 



244 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

great progress in Ceylon, and there can be no qaestion of 
the important bearing which the advance of Christianity, 
civilization, and edacation there will have upon the vast 
continent of India, upon Burmah, Siam, and Cambodia, 
and even upon China. In Ceylon ten per cent, of the 
children of a school-going age are being educated ; in 
India the proportion is less than one per cent. 
Prom our island Sinhalese and Tamils are going out as 
teachers, also as magistrates and lawyers, to Madras, and 
some are even finding their way eastward to the Straits 
iLud on towards China. Most of these young men have 
been educated in mission-schools under the influence of 
Christianity, and wherever they go they carry with them 
and disseminate a civilizing and, I trust. Christian spirit ; 
so that when you are working in Ceylon you are benefiting 
not only the people there, but the inhabitants of Southern 
India, and, directly or indirectly, the peoples of Indo- 
China, who, as Buddhists chiefly, are in such close rela- 
tions to Lanka (Ceylon), the sacred land of Buddhism. 
While travelling in steamers and on railways, I have often 
heard disparaging remarks about mission work in Asia. 
Merchants and others who have been in the East often say 
they have never seen much good result from the work of 
missionaries. I asked tbem whether they had ever gone 
into the jungle, the country districts and villages, or even 
to the native churches in the bigger towns, and seen the 
missionary at work there. * No,' they reply, * they had 
never seen him at work in the jungle.' I have; I have 
again and again gone with the missionaries to their 
districts, and have seen for myself the good they are 
accomplishing. I have heard the testimony of the people 
themselves to the power of Christianity. I have astonished 
English and American friends by telling them of villages 
and districts in Ceylon, where Tamils and Sinhalese are 
as earnest and practical Christians as any in England or 
in America. In these days of scepticism you might fairly 
challenge men who deny the success of Christian missions 
and the good they are doing to send out a commission to 
Ceylon, to visit these Sinhalese and Tamil villages, where 
the people have their own pastors of their own race and 
locally supported, their Sunday-schools and day-schools, 
and where you might imagine yourself to be in the centre 
of England or in the most Christian part of America. 



Progress of Mission Work in Ceylon, 245 

The time is coming when you may fairly look for reaping 
a great harvest in Ceylon, if you persevere with your 
missionary work in that island. I believe that the pro- 
gress of Christianity and education there will be not only 
in an arithmetical, but a geometrical progression ere long, 
so that we may see Christianity permeate the whole 
island. One word with regard to 'the influence of laymen. 
I have often felt not only that inadequate support is given 
to mission work, but that missionaries themselves often 
meet with opposition from some of their countrymen, who 
go out into those regions on a mission which (as I heard 
described by Canon Westcott in Westminster Abbey on 
Sunday last) is more in the nature of selfishness than of 
self- sacrifice. I would impress upon the pastors assembled 
here to-day the great importance of seeing that the young 
men of their Churches destined for a Colonial or Indian 
life are true Christian laymen, because the influence of 
such upon their servants and others who observe their 
consistent life is immensely in favour of the spread of 
Christianity. When the natives observe that the civil 
servant, the layman — say the British merchant with 
whom they deal in business, is honest, truthful, and up- 
right — they will say, * He is a specimen of Christianity, 
we can trust him, and there must be something in 
his religion.' " 

Wesley Christian College, Colombo, is the most notable 
educational institution in connection with this Mission. 
The South Ceylon Mission has now been divided into 
three districts : Colombo and the Western province ; Galle 
and the Southern province ; Kandy and the Negombo dis- 
trict, as well as the Central and Uva provinces. 

The work of the North Ceylon Wesleyan Mission, with 
its important agencies, colleges and schools at Jaflha, 
Point Pedro, Batticaloa, and Trincomalee, deserves special 
mention. 

Y. — A Sketch op Missionary Work in Ceylon. 

The following account is from the pen of the late Dr. 
Macvicar, of Moffat (who was for many years chaplain of 
St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Colombo), and is given 
as illustrative of mission work in Ceylon : — 

** About twelve miles from Colombo, the chief town of 



246 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Cejlon» on the high yoad to Oalle, which is the second 
town, there is a belt or bar of land, lying between the 
aea on the one side, and an extensive lake, or rather 
lagoon, on the other. And as the sea in this quarter 
abounds in fish, and this lagoon has many arms leading 
from its ample basin into canals stretching along the 
coast, and into rivers flowing from the mountains, so as 
to form a great harbour, the surrounding country, which 
is very fertile, has become very populous. On the bank of 
land referred to, stands the thriving village of Morotto, re- 
markable for its fishermen and its carpenters. And here 
it was that the incident I am going to relate occurred. 

" But, first, let me tell you of the peculiar beauty and 
interest which the lake of Morotto possesses. It is itself 
a very fine sheet of water ; but the objects that surround 
it invest it with its peculiar beauty. Its bosom is every- 
where fringed by various species of mangroves, their 
every branch steadied by roots falling right down from 
them, and dipping into th^ water, beneath which they fix 
themselves in the soil. Immediately behind, there is a 
belt of beautifully verdant copse or jungle, luxuriantly 
entangled, or hanging in rich festoons around noble trees, 
adorned now and then with magnificent blossoms. Then 
come extensive topes of coco-palms everywhere that the 
population extends ; while beyond them, towards the in- 
terior, as far as the eye can reach, there is a forest — the 
trees, in tbeir general appearance, not unlike those in a 
European forest, but on a grander scale. And all these 
vegetable riches, which adorn the spacious lake, like the 
sleeping waters of the lake itself, are seen reposing in a 
sunshine which for more than half the year never knows 
any shadows but those of the evening and morning, which 
bring such ample dews along with them that there is a 

Eerpetual verdure all the year. Add to this, that the 
orizon-line on the inland side is bounded by a lofty 
range of mountains, among which Adam's Peak rears its 
majestic summit, and it will be seen that the entire 
scenery is of dream-like beauty. The delight, however, 
with which the eye gazes is soon lost for feelings of quite 
another kind, when, ceasing to commune with Nature, we 
look to those monuments upon the banks of the lake, 
which claim man for their author. These remind us that, 
all-beautiful though nature be in this region, when viewed 



Progress of Mission Work in Ceylon. 247 

in herself, yet, viewed in reference to man, these are but 
dark places of the earth, full of the habitations of cruelty. 
There is one feature in nature, indeed, which seems to 
inyite to the shores of this lake of Morotto as a fit place 
for the nurture of the darker superstitions. For up its 
waters, on some lonely and almost inaccessible islands, 
covered with lofty and seemingly leafless trees, there are 
seen hanging in the top branches, in ponderous masses, 
certain large, motionless objects, which remain black and 
without lustre in the brightest sunshine. They are many 
hundreds in number. Point to them, and ask the boat- 
men what they are, you will soon hear on the lips of 
every native in the boat the unearthly sound of * wouUd I 
woulU 1 * But what are they ? Devote a long hour to the 
oar, in order to get nearer, and say that you are beneath 
them : they have left the trees, the air over your head is 
black with them — black with vampires or flying foxes, 
bats as large as eagles, in many hundreds, flapping 
their wings most sluggishly, and in most fitful silence, 
till one after another they have vanished from the air, 
and are only seen in distant trees, hanging again by their 
feet till nightfall. Whether it was the contrast between 
these unearthly creatures and all nature around, I know 
not ; but I have never seen anything so like what one 
would fancy round the very mouth of hell, as these clouds 
of woullas. 

** Let us turn our back upon them, then, and look down 
the beautiful sunny lake towards Morotto and the sea, 
whose distant roar is quite refreshing after the solemn 
silence of the forest, and the flights of the monster bats. 
The return to the place from which we set out will not be 
less agreeable for this, that the delicious sea-breeze will 
meet us in the face. But what is that dome, with its 
gilded pinnacle glittering in the sunbeams, on the top of 
the hill, surrounded by lofty bo-trees ? It is a Buddhist 
temple, with its accompanying dagoba and pansala, where 
learned priests are thronging, each ordained by a chapter 
organized with profound policy, and venerating legitimacy 
of succession as much as any ecclesiastics in Home — 
priests, but with this reservation, that man is the only 
god they acknowledge ; while for man, alas I notwith- 
standing his possible godhead, when this life is over, they 
allow no heaven better than annihilation I The common 



248 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

people do perhaps worship Buddha, as if he were a real 
heing, great and powerful, and consciously existing some- 
where. But the sacred books adore his memory only ; and 
the priesthood proclaim no god to the people but them- 
selves. This is bad enough. Yes; what can be worse 
than atheism ? And yet, let us hear what the boatman 
says of that headland on the other side of the lake, so 
remarkable for its hoary trees and dense impenetrable 
jungle. There is a treasure hidden there, he says. Then 
why not go and dig it up ? * Ah I it is guarded by a 
demon,' he answers ; and reminds us of a custom practised 
in Ceylon, I am told, at no very remote period, the very 
thought of which makes the blood run cold. It was this : 
The owner of a treasure, when he apprehended from any 
cause that it was not safe at home, having selected some 
lonely spot in the jungle, dug two holes there, close beside 
each other ; the one large enough to hold his treasure, the 
other much larger. He then returned to his home, and, 
having taken a large knife, and concealed it in his dress, 
called a trusty servant, showed him the bag of money, and 
required him to bear it along with him into the jungle. 
The faithful servant obeys ; and when they have arrived 
at the secret spot, the treasure is deposited in its hole, and 
committed to the keeping of the servant, on which his 
throat is cut, and the body buried ! And thereafter, he 
who receives this reward for his fidelity is believed to be a 
demon, and the treasure is safe in the keeping of tbe 
yakka ! 8uch is a sample of those atrocities to which 
demon-worship prompts. Barbarities like these were 
indeed practised only in other times ; but still, demon- 
worship forms the only positive religion of the heathen in 
Buddhistic countries. It prevails to a vast extent, not only 
in Ceylon, but in all Southern India ; and this is truly 
lamentable, both in a religious point of view, and because 
it is so gloomy, unsocial, and inhuman. It is to a priest 
of this religion that the incident relates, to which we now 
proceed. 

'* He was an old man, and the temple where he minis- 
tered was his own. It presented its dismal front in a 
shady grove, almost fifty yards off a much-frequented by- 
road, which led from the highway to a populous village 
on the banks of the lake. Ajad there had the old demon- 
priest remained for many a long year by his idols. And 



Progress of Mission Work in Ceylon. 249 

many orgies had hd celebrated in every hamlet around, 
wherever there was any one sick who could afford to pay, 
or anything secret which was wanted to be known, or, 
haply, a new-married woman anxious about her first child, 
or a mother to whom childbirth was known to be a 
dangerous moment. Nay, I have been credibly informed 
of the daughters of Ghnstian parents, who have stolen 
away to consult the kapurdla. Such is the hold which 
demon-worship has upon the human mind. Is this much- 
frequented road, then, in one of the loveliest bypaths of 
the world, to be left with no retreat for the piously- 
disposed, but a demon- temple with its priest ? No ; the 
Wesleyan Missionary Society — that noble institution for 
the evangelization of the heathen, which secures the very 
best ministers of that communion for missionaries — has 
long had a station in Morotto ; and it was resolved that a 
mission chapel should be erected opposite the demon- 
temple, on the other side of the road ; each erection, how- 
ever, out of the sight of the other. The chapel was 
accordingly built ; and at the time to which this narrative 
refers, the missionary who ministered in it was a pure 
Sinhalese, Peter de Zylva by name, a man of great kind- 
ness of heart and energy of character. Mr. de Zylva*s 
domiciliary visits were reaching every house and hamlet 
in Morotto, and his voice was ringing with the mysteries 
of redemption, musically, yet powerfully, from the desk in 
the Morotto chapel, Sabbath-day and week-day, while the 
passengers were arrested more and more, until his little 
flock became a large one, and the communicants numbered 
nearly a hundred. 

" But how was it going with the old priest in his old 
demon-temple over the way ? Was he plotting mischief 
and plying a bad tongue against the missionary who was 
thus turning the people from his temple into another, 
where his own religion was denounced as most sinful and 
unholy, and the cross of Christ proclaimed as the power of 
God unto salvation unto every one that believeth ? This 
was nothing less than might have been expected from 
human nature under the circumstances. But not so here. 
While the people who used to frequent his temple were 
turning the opposite way, the old priest, sitting inside, 
listened day after day to the hymns and the prayers and 
the preaching of the Christian congregation and the Chris- 



250 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

tian minister. This, happily, he could do with good effect 
in the silence which reigned aronnd him, so near were 
both places of worship to each other ; and such is the 
power of the Spirit of God, when an earnest Christian 
minister is His instrument, that, despite the hebetude of 
old age and the habits of a lifetime, despite the power of 
an hereditary faith and every suggestion of egotism, the 
old man felt that he could not help believing, and that he 
must go and unfold his mind to Peter de Zylva. He did 
so accordingly. And in answer to the always respectful 
and friendly question of the missionary — what brought him 
there ? — he told him what had befallen his heart through 
listening to the preaching of the gospel ; that he had done 
with his idols, and locked up his temple. ' And here is 
the key,' said he, * which you must take, for the temple 
is my own ; and I can do with it as I please. For me, 
henceforth, there remains nothing but to humble myself in 
penitence, and to believe in Christ * * A kapurdla ! * said 
Peter de Zylva, suspicious of his countryman ; * what can 
I do with yourself and your key ? You must not throw 
yourself on us. We are poor people : we can do nothing 
for you that way.' * Do not think so unworthily of me,* 
said the old man ; ' I shall need but little, and that little 
not loDg.* * And then as to this key,* rejoined Peter, 
* suppose I take it, do you know what I shall, do this very 
day ? ' * No,' said the old man, * nor do I care, if but the 
temple pass from my hands into yours.* * Very well,' said 
the missionary, *you see this stick of mine — (Peter usually 
walks with a heavy staff) — I tell you, I will take and 
smash every idol in your temple, this very day, and leave 
you nothing before night but chips and rubbish on the 
floor.' *Do it,' said the old man: * better you than L' 
And it was done. Before acknowledging him as a Chris- 
tian brother, the earnest but cautious missionary tried 
him on every point where a mistake or a cheat, on the 
part of the old man, seemed possible. But there was no 
mistake, no deceit. The conversion of the old demon- 
priest was one of those soul-delighting demonstrations of 
the power of the Spirit, where the best-defended strong- 
holds of fallen nature are made to surrender uncondi- 
tionally to the truth as it is in Jesus." 



APPENDIX IV, 



CASTE IN CEYLON. 

Caste, though disavowed by Buddhism, has still some 
hold on the Sinhalese, and, as a matter of civil distinction, 
intermarriages of persons of different castes are almost 
unknown, except amongst the lowest of the population. 
The Tamils have all the Hindu castes, as essentials of 
their religion, from the Brahman downwards to the Koviya 
and Pariah. There are no Brahman s amongst the Sinha- 
lese, and the Chaliyas (cinnamon peelers) strongly dispute 
the pre-eminence of the Vellalas or husbandmen. The 
fishermen are another great caste, and, curiously enough, 
they are the best and most enterprizing carpenters ; then 
follow numerous divisions on to the dhoby (washermen) 
and jaggery castes, the members of which are employed to 
collect the juice from the flower sheaths of palms, to be 
fermented into " toddy " and yeast, distilled into arrack, or 
inspissated into coarse sugar called jaggery. Under the 
Kandyan dynasty, caste was strictly enforced — the son of 
a barber being inevitably and for hfe a barber. There is 
now no legal restriction, nor any social disability, save 
what the natives voluntarily choose to retain or submit to, 
and the anomaly of State-supported churches of Christians 
in Ceylon has also been removed, but officials, in some 
cases, foolishly encourage caste pretensions. The worse 
than waste of the temporaUties (land, &c.) attached to 
Buddhist temples has, however, yet to be dealt with by 
Government. [See in further illustration the information 
in a later appendix, received as the sheets were passing 
through press.] 



APPENDIX V. 

1.— A LIST OF THE BRITISH GOVEENORS OF 

CEYLON.* 

1. Hon. Frederick North (subsequently Eabl of Guil- 

ford), 12th October, 1798. 

2. Lieut. -General the Right Hon. Sir Thomas Maitland, 

G.C.B., 19th July, 1805. 

Major-General John Wilson, Lieut. -Governor, 
19th March, 1811, 

3. General Sir Robert Brownrigg, Bart., G.C.B., 11th 

March, 1812. 

Major-General Sir Edward Barnes, KC.B., 
Lieut. -Governor, 1st February, 1820. 

4. Lieui-General the Hon. Sir Edward Paget, KC.B., 

2nd February, 1822. 

Major-General Sir James Campbell, K.C.B., 
Lieut.-Governor, 6th November, 1822. 

5. Lieut. -General Sir Edward Barnes, K.C.B., 18th 

January, 1824. 

Major-General Sir John Wilson, KC.B., Lieut- 
Governor, 18th October, 1881. 

6. The Right Hon. Sir Robert Wilmot Horton, Bart., 

G.C.B., 23rd October, 1881. 

7. The Right Hon. James Alexander Stewart Mackenzie, 

7th November, 1887. 

8. Lieut. -General Sir Colin Campbell, K.C.B., 5th April, 

1841. 

Sir James Emerson Tennent, K.C.S., Lieut.- 
Governor, 19th April, 1847. 

• From 16th February, 1796, to 12th October, 1798, the colony 
was attached to the Madras Presidency. 



British Governors of Ceylon. 268 

9. The Right Hon. the Viscount Torrinoton, 29th May, 
1847. 

The Hon. Charles Justin MacCarthy, Lieot- 
Governor, 18th October, 1850. 

10. Sir George William Anderson, K.C.B., 27th Novem- 

ber, 1850. 

The Hon. Charles Justin MacCarthy, Lieut. - 
Governor, 18th January., 1855. 

11. Sir Henry George Ward, G.C.'M.G., 11th May, 1855. 

Major-General Henry Frederick Lockyer, C.B., 
K.H., Lieut. -Governor, 80th June, 1860. 

Colonel Charles Edmund Wilkinson, R.E., 
Lieut.-Governor, 80th July, 1860. 

12. Sir Charles Justin MacCarthy, Kt., 22nd October, 1860. 

Major-General Terkncb O'Bkien, Officer. Ad- 
ministering the Government, Ist December, 
1868. 
18. Sir Hercules George Eobert Robinson, Kt., Lieut.- 
Governor, 81st March ; Governor, 16th May, 1865. 

Lieut.-General Studholmb John Hodgson, Officer 
Administering the Government, 2nd July, 
1868, to 12th June, 1869, during Sir H. 
Robinson's leave of absence. 

The Hon. Henry Turner Irving, Officer Ad- 
ministering the Government, 4th January, 
1872. 

14. The Right Hon. William Henry Gregory (Sir W. H. 

Gregory, K.C.M.G., 1875), 4th March, 1872. 
The Hon. Arthur Norris Birch (C.M.G., 1875), 
Administrator of the Government, 17th April 
to 14th August, 1874, and 20th December, 
1875, to 29th January, 1876; Lieut.-Governor, 
15th January to 10th April, 1877 (during Sir 
W. H. Gregory's absences from the colony) ; 
Lieut.-Governor, 9th May to 8rd September, 
1877. 

15. Sir James Robert Longden, K.C.M.G. (G.C.M.G., 

1888), 4th September, 1877. 

The Hon. John Douglas, C.M.G., Lieut. -Gover- 
nor, 28th February to 16th September, 1881 
(during Sir J. R. Longden's absence). 

Sir John Douglas, K.C.M.G., Lieut-Governor, 
14th July, 1888. 



254 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

16. The Hon. Sir Arthub Gordon, G.C.M.G., gazetted 
Governor, August, 1883 ; assumed the Admmistra- 
tion on December 3rd of that year. 

Major-General Sir John Chetham Mcleod, KC.B., 
Administered the Government during Sir A. 
Gordon's absence, June to November, 1885. 



2.— CHIEF JUSTICES OP CEYLON. 

Sir Edward Codrington Carrington, 1802. 

The Hon. Alexander Johnston (provisional), 1806. 

Right Hon. E. C. Lushington (provisional), 1807. 

W. Coke, Esq. (provisional), 1809. 

Sir Alexander Johnston (Chief Jqstice and President of 

the Council), 6th November, 1811. 
Sir Hardinge Giffard, Kt., LL.D., 1820. 
Sir Richard Ottley, Kt., 1827. 
Sir Charles Marshall, Kt., 1883. 
Sir William Norris, Kt., April, 1836. 
Sergeant Sir W. Rough, Kt., April, 1837 
Sir Anthony Oliphant, Kt., 1838. 
Sir William Ogle Carr, Kt., 1864. 
Sir W. Carpenter Rowe, Kt., 1856. 
The Hon. P. I. Sterling (acting), 1859. 
Sir Edward Creasy, Kt., 1860. 
Sir R. F. Morgan, Kt. (acting), 1875. 
The Hon. C. H. Stewart (acting), 1876. 
Sir George Anderson, Kt. (acting), 1876. 
Sir William Hackett, Kt., 1877. 
Sir John Budd Phear, Kt., 1877. 
Sir Richard Cayley, Kt., 1879. 
Hon. L. B. Clarence (acting), 1882. 
Hon. J. P. de Wet, Kt., and Sir George Anderson (acting), 

1882-3, 
The Hon. Sir Bruce Lockhart Burnside, 1883 (knighted 

in 1884). 
Hon. F. Fleming (acting), 1885, during Sir Bruce Burn- 

side^s absence. 



British Major-Oenercds in Ceylon. 265 

8.— BRITISH MAJOR-GENERALS COMMANDING 

THE TROOPS IN CEYLON. 

(Previously to 1819 the Governors were not only officially bat actively 

commanders of the troops.) 

Sir Edward Barnes, K.C.B., 1819. — Afterwards Ceylon's 
great Governor, a remarkable man. He became 
Governor in 1824, and held the post until 1831. It 
was his mind that planned and executed the Kandy 
Road, and other main lines throughout the island. 
He likewise erected the Pavilion at Kandy ; Barnes 
Hall, Nuwara Elliya; and Mount Lavinia House. 
A bronze statue in honour of him as Governor stands 
opposite the Queen's House, Colombo. 

Sir James Campbell, K.C.B., 1822. 

Sir Hudson Lowe, 1826. — Previously (1815-1821) 
Governor of St. Helena, and Custodian of Napoleon 
Bonaparte. 

Sir John Wilson, K.C.B., 1831. 

Sir R. Arbuthnot, K.C.B., 1838. 

WilHam Smelt, C.B., 1847. — The so-called Kandyan re- 
bellion of 1848 occurred during Major-General Smelt's 
command, and there was an angry correspondence 
between Lord Torrington, Major-General Smelt, and 
General F. Braybrooke, relative to the officers of 
the Ceylon Rifle Regiment. 

T. Reed, C.B., 1852. 

P. Bainbrigge, C.B., 1854. 

Henry F. Lockyer, C.B., K.H., 1857. — Major-General 
Lockyer, who had been Lieutenant-Governor after 
Sir H. Ward was transferred to Madras, left the 
island in ill-health, and died on board the S.S. RipoUy 
16th October, 1861. 

Terence O'Brien, 1860. — In the time of Major-General 
O'Brien, his son, Major O'Brien, was tried by court- 
martial for a letter published in the MofussUite, 
reflecting on the civil authorities in Ceylon. The 
Major-General did not confirm the sentence, and the 
Horse Guards removed the censure of the local 
court. 

Studholme John Hodgson, 1865. — It was during Major- 
General Hodgson^s time that a commission was ap- 



256 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

pointed to inquire into the military expenditure of 
Gejlon. There were food riots in Golomho, and the 
military were asked to assist the ciyil authorities in 
quelling them. 

Henry Renny, C.8.I., 1869. 

John Alfred Street, C.B., 1874. 

William Wilby, C.B., 1879. 

Sir John C. McLeod, K.C.B., 1882. 

Sir Wilbraham Lennox, V.C., R.E., K.C.B., 1887, 

Some of the Governors, such as General Brownrigg 
(1815) and Lientenant-General Sir Golin Gampbell (1841), 
neld the two ofifices of Governor and Gommander of the 
Forces. Major-Generals Sir John Wilson, Lockyer, 
O'Brien, Hodgson, and McLeod, acted respectively as 
Lieutenant-Governor, &c., during the absence or other- 
wise of the Governor from the island. 



4. EXECUTIVE COUNCILLORS OF CEYLON. 

Colonial Secretaries, — Hugh Cleghom, 1799. R. Arbuthnot, 
1803. Honourable J. Rodney, 1815. P. Anstruther 
(**the one-armed Rajah"), 1884. Sir J. Emerson 
Tennent, K.C.S., 1846. Charles Justin McCarthy, 
1850. W. Chas. Gibson, 1861. H. T. Irving, 1869. 
Arthur N. Birch, C.M.G., 1878. John Douglas, 
C.M.G., 1878. C. C. Smith, 1885. Col. Walker, 1887. 

Queen's Advocates, — William Coke, 1809. H. GifFard, 
LL.D., 1811. Henry Matthews, 1817. W. Norris, 
1882. W. 0. Carr, 1834. James Stark, 1841. 
Arthur BuUer, 1842. H. C. Selby, 1848. H. B. 
Thomson, 1859. Sir R. F. Morgan, 1868. Richard 
Cayley, 1876. B. L. Burnside, 1880. C. L. Ferdi- 
nands (acting), 1882. Francis Fleming (Attorney- 
General), 1888. Samuel Grenier, 1887. 

Auditors- General, — A. Bertolacci, 1809. John D'Oyly, 
1815. E. Tolfrey, 1816. J. W. Carrington, 1817. 
H. A. Marshal, 1824. H. Wright, 1842. C. J. 
MacCarthy, 1848. W. C. Gibson, 1850. R. T. 
Pennefather, 1862. Robert John Callander, 1866. 
John Douglas, 1870. W. C. Barclay, 1876. W. H. 
Ravenscroft, 1877. 

Treasurei's. — Robert Boyd, 1809. J. W. Carrington, 1812. 



A Few Public Benefactors in British Times. 257 

Thomas Eden, 1816. John Drave, 1822. W. Gran- 
ville, 1828. J. W. Carrington, 1824. F. J. Templer, 
1848. J. Caulfeild, 1854. F. Saunders, 1861. G. 
Yane, C.M.G., 1865. W. D. Wright, 1882. G. T. 
M. O'Brien, 1886. 
Solicitor- General (the first). — C. L. Ferdinands, Esq. 



5.— A FEW PUBLIC (NON-OFFICIAL) BENEFAG- 

TOES IN BKITISH TIMES. 

Geo. Bikd, the late, who opened the first regular coffee 
plantation. 

EoBEBT Boyd Tytler, the late, who introduced the im- 
proved West Indian system of coffee planting, and 
also was the first to cultivate cocoa (cacao) in Ceylon. 

David Wilson, the late, for his improvements in the pre- 
paration of coco-nut oil and coir manufactures ; and 
the Messrs. Leechman, who succeeded him in Hults- 
dorf Mills. 

Gabriel and Maurice Worms, the late, as pioneers who 
vested a large amount of capital in coffee and tea 
cultivation. 

Christopher Elliott, M.D., the late, for his philanthropic 
labours among Burghers and Natives, and his inde- 
pendent attitude as a Journalist; also as the first 
head of the Civil Medical Department of the colony, 
and the projector of Hospitals, Colleges, &c. 

A. M. Ferguson, C.M.G., M.R.A.S., for his labours in 
urging cultivation of new products, especially cinchona 
and tea ; also as Journalist {Ceylon Observer) and Pub- 
lisher (in conjunction with J. Ferguson) of Tropical 
Agriculturist J Manuals for Tropical Planters, Ceylon 
Handbooks and Directories, &c. Resident fifty years. 

C. A. LoRENz, Barrister, the late, for disinterested work 
as Legislator and Publicist, more especially in aiding 
the advance of his own people, the Burghers. 

John Capper, M.R.A.S. (Ceylon branch), Merchant and 
Journalist in Ceylon for over forty years. Author of 
several works on, or on subjects connected with, 
the colony. 

The De Soyza Family (especially C. H. De Soyza, Esq., 
J.P.) and Mudaliyar Sampson Rajapakse, for enter- 

18 



258 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

prise in developing planting industry, constructing 
roads, endowing hospitals and schools, and numerous 
other public benefactions. 

G. A. Cruwell, the late, as a Pioneer Planter who visited 
and reported, in Ceylon Observer, on Java, Southern 
and Northern India, West Coast of Africa (Liberia), 
Brazil, and Central America, for the benefit of his 
fellow planters in Ceylon ; doing much to intro- 
duce the Liberian species of coffee and India-rubber 
trees. 

James Alwis, the late, as Legislator and Author, in 
writing on the literature and history of his own 
people, the Sinhalese. 

Sir M. CoMABA SwAMY, Kt., the late, as Legislator and 
Author on subjects connected with his own people, 
the Tamils. 

Hon. James Van Langenberg, M.L.C., Advocate, the late, 
for valuable work as legislator and lawyer. 

George Wall, Planter and Merchant, some time Member 
of the Legislative Council, and Chairman of the 
Chamber of Commerce, and at present Chairman of 
the Planters' Association. Has, since his arrival in 
1846, taken a leading part in discussing public afifairs. 
Founded a Ceylon League to secure a reform of the 
Legislative Council. 

Eev. Levi Spaulding, D.D. (" Father Spaulding "), the late, 
of the American Mission. He laboured uninterruptedly 
for over fifty years in the north of the island among the 
Tamils, educating and Christianizing a large number, 
aided by earnest, disinterested brethren and sisters, 
among whom Miss Agnew (who also never took 
furlough) died on the Mission-field after well-nigh 
fifty years' service. 

Also Dr. Green, Medical Missionary of the same Mission, 
who translated and compiled standard medical works 
for his Tamil students; the same students proving 
of the greatest value to the Government and the 
people before a Colombo Medical College was estab- 
lished by Government, and Ceylon students were 
trained there. 

The Rev. John Kilner, of the Wesleyan Mission, de- 
serves to be remembered among the JafiEaa Tamils, 
among whom he laboured. 



A Few Public Benefactors in British Times. 259 



u 



XUi^-ix^ Sir Samuel Baeeb, for his experiments (agricultural, &c.) 
at Nuwara Eliya, extending over seven years, and his 
two books on the island : ** Seven Years in Ceylon," 
and ** The Eifle and the Hound in Ceylon." 

Reginald John Corbet, the late, a leading Ceylon Planter 
of many years' standing, a Pioneer in Cinchona cul- 
tivation, ex-Member of the Legislative Council, and 
Chairman of the Planters' Association. 

John Nietner, the late, Prussian-bom, naturalized British 
subject, for his contributions to Natural History, es- 
pecially ** Entomology," and his little work, '* Enemies 
of the Coffee-tree in Ceylon." 

W. W. Mitchell, Esq., H. Bois, Esq., and J. J. Gbinlin- 
TON, Esq., C.E., F.R.G.S., for their active zeal in the 
public interests in a variety of ways. 

G. H. D. Elphinstone, Coffee Planter and Pioneer in the 
Dimbula District from 1868 onward, as well as Pioneer 
, with Tea cultivation in several districts of the island; 
a most industrious, persevering colonist, under many 
difficulties; now Sir Graeme H. D. Elphinstone, 
Bart. 

John Febguson, M.E.A.S., Corresponding Secretary for 
Ceylon of the Eoyal Colonial Institute, Journalist 
and Author, for twenty- seven years a colonist; ori- 
ginated (in conjunction with the late E. V. Dunlop) 
Mission Extension to the Sabaragamuwa,Hambantota, 
and Uva districts ; started agitation for railway exten- 
sion beyond Nawalapitya to Uva. 

Among a large body of Christian missionaries, authors, 
and true philanthropists, mention should be made 
of Clough, Lambbick, Habvabd, Daniel, Gogebly, Spence 
Hardy, Oakley, Cabteb, Scott, Ibeland Jones, and 
Coles. 

Among officials whose names are not included in the 
lists given above, but whose special services to Ceylon 
deserve notice, are — 

Anthony Bebtolacci, who wrote a valuable work on the 
trade and revenue in Ceylon early in the century. 

Major Fobbes, late of 78th Eegiment, for his interesting 
work ** Eleven Years in Ceylon." 

J. W. Bennett, F.L.S., for his work ** Ceylon and its Capa- 



260 Ceylon in the Jtibilee Year. 

bilities/' and his contributions to the stndy of the 
Natural History of the Island. 

Capt. James Stewart, Master Attendant of Colombo, for 
his investigation of the pearl fishery, and useful notes 
and papers on this and other practical subjects 
connected with the revenue and progress of the 
island. 

Pbbcival Acland Dyke, for the long period of forty years 
Government Agent of the Northern Province of 
Ceylon, to the development of which, and the welfare 
of the people, he gave the service of his life. 

Sir Chas. Peteb Latabd, E.C.M.G., for a nearly equal 
period Government Agent of the Western Province, 
where he was in useful " labours more abundant." 

Major Skinner, C.M.G., the great roadmaker of Ceylon, 
who began his work under Sir Edward Barnes, and 
closed his most useful career forty years later, under 
Sir Hercules Eobinson. 

Sir B. F. Morgan, Et., included among the Chief Justices, 
did notable service to the Colony as its lawmaker for 
many years. 

GuHiPORD Lindsay Molesworth, C.I.E., as the successful 
Engineer of the Colombo and Kandy Bailway, the 
discoverer of a route which had been overlooked by 
several predecessors. 

Sir Charles Hutton Gregory, K.C.M.G., as Consulting 
Engineer for many years in connection with the 
development of its system of railways. 

Sir John Coode, E.G., as Consulting Engineer, and Mr. 
John Eyle as Besident Engineer, for the Colombo 
Breakwater and Harbour Works, which have proved 
so successful. 

G. H. K. Thwaites, F.B.S., Ph.D., for many years Direc- 
tor of the Boyal Botanic Garden, and the compiler of 
the ** Enumeratio Plantarum ZeylaniflB." 

W. Ferguson, F.L.S., author of a ** Monograph on the 
Palmyra Palm," pamphlets on "Ceylon Timber 
Trees," ** Ferns," " Snakes," &c., and for his contri- 
butions to the Natural History of the island. 

Henry Trimen, M.B., F.L.S., the gifted successor to Dr. 
Thwaites, who, as botanist and practical observer, 
has already laid the Colony under special obligations. 

Hon. George Turnour, for his translation of the *' Maha- 



A Few Public Benefactors in British Times. 261 

wanso'* and other invalaable work connected with the 
ancient history of Ceylon. 

Louis Zoyza, Mudliyar, Chief Translator to Government, 
for his useful work as an Orientalist. 

Simon Casi CrarTY, Mudliyar, for his " Ceylon Gazetteer," 
and numerous other writings. 

Dr. Barceopt Boakb, Principal of the Eoyal College, 
Colombo, and for many years Hon. Secretary Friend- 
in-Need Society, and for his literary and Natural 
History writings. 

Hon. P. D. Anthonisz, M.D.,M.L.C.,as a Ceylonese surgeon 
who has risen to the highest eminence in his profes- 
sion, and in the esteem of his countrymen by his good 
works, ** The Anthonisz Memorial " (Hospital Wards), 
and his nomination to the Legislative Council afford- 
ing evidence. 

C. L. Ferdinands, Esq., Solicitor-General, as the unofficial 
leader of the Burghers after Mr. Lorenz*s death, and 
in office as Legislator and Criminal Prosecutor, re- 
spected for his conscientious, honourable, zealous 
pursuit of duty. Mr. Ferdinands incurred the dis- 
pleasure of Governor Gordon for no fault of his own, 
and was passed over in 1886 for the Attorney- General- 
ship in favour of his friend Mr. Grenier, much to the 
regret of those who knew best his long and useful 
labours, and his high sense of duty. 

The name of Sir J. Emerson Tennent finds a place in the 
list of Lieut.-Govemors and Colonial Secretaries, but 
it deserves special mention as that of the author of 
the most valuable and complete work published on 
Ceylon up to his day, 1867-61. 



APPENDIX VI. 

PEINCIPAL BE8ULTS OF THE CENSUS 

TAKBH OH 17th RBBUABT, 1881.* 

iCompUedJirom the Begiitrar-GeneraTi {Mr. L, F. Lee*i) Beport and Statementa.'} 

AEEA— POPULATION. 

GENERAL STATEMENT OF THE ABEA AND P0PT7LATI0N 
(ExclasiTe of the Military and the Shipping). 



CEYLON 

Westxbn Pboyiitcx 

NoBXH-WeSTXBM PaOYINOK. 

Cevtiul Fboyiitob 

Nobth-Cemtbal Fboyince . 

NoBTBE&K Fboyince 

Eastbbn Pboyimce 

SouTHBBM Fboyince 



Wbstbbn Fboyince. 



Ck)Iombo, Municipality of 

Colombo District (ezolosiTe of the 

Municipality) 

Negombo District 

Eegalla District 

Ratnapura District 

Kalutara District 



Nobth-Westebn Fboyince. 

Kurunegala District 

Futtalam District 



CsNTKAL Fboyince. 

Eandy District 

Matale District 

Badulla District 

Nuwara Eliya District 



Nobth-Cbntbal Fboyince. 
Nuwarakalawiya District (including 
Tamankaduwa) 



NoBTHEBN Fboyince. 

Jaffna District 

Mannar District 

Mullaittivu District 

Vavuniyan-Vilankulam District 



EA8TSBN Fboyince. 

Batticaloa District 

Trincomalee District 



SouTHEBN Fboyince. 

Galle District 

Matara District 

Hambantota District 



Area in 
square 
miles. 



25,866 
8,466 
8,034 
6,029 
4,047 
8,171 
8,667 
1,980 

»& + 

682 
248 
651 
1,484 
581 



1,840 
1,184 



904 

962 

8,790 

858 



4,047 



876 
482 
927 
987 



2,596 
1,062 



587 
548 
895 



Persons. 



2,750,788 
897,829 
288,827 



66,146 
802.500 
127,555 
488,520 

110,502 

279,286 
116,691 
119,955 
105,874 
165,021 



215,178 
78,164 



288,882 
86»655 

165,692 
98,682 



66,146 



265,588 

21,848 

7,688 

7,981 



105,858 
22,197 



209,680 

151,928 

71,917 



Males. 



1,409,668 
476,897 
158,026 
861,528 

85,580 
151,565 

66,677 
220,886 

62,226 

148,775 
61,860 
64,698 
69,880 
88,969 



114,989 
48,087 



162,277 
48,470 
92,627 
68,149 



85,680 



181,488 

11,820 

4,218 

4,549 



64,598 
11,979 



105,808 
77,516 
87,561 



Females. 



1,290,185 
421,982 
186,801 
277,888 
80,666 
160,985 
60,978 
212,686 

48,277 

186,511 
55,881 
55,257 
46,494 
81,062 



100,184 
86,117 



126,056 
88,185 
78,065 
40,588 



80,566 



184,100 

10,028 

8,425 

8,882 



50,760 
10,218 



108,872 
74,407 
84,856 



No. of 

persons 

per square 

mile. 



109 

260 

97 

106 

16 

95 

85 

, 219 

11,698 

525 
471 
184 
74 
284 



117 
66 



819 
88 
44 

279 



16 



804 

49 

8 

8 



41 
21 



890 

277 

80 



♦ One per cent, per annum can be added to the results to bring the figures up to date.— 
AUTHOB. f Exclusive of the area of the Colombo Lake. 



NATIONALITIES. 



263 



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265 



ESTATE POPULATION; CHIEFLY TAMIL COOLIE 

IMMIGRANTS. 



STATEMENT SHOWING THE DISTRIBUTION OP THE ESTATE POPULA- 
TION, WITH THE NUMBER OP ESTATES IN EACH REVENUE 
DISTRICT. 



DiSTBICTS. 



No. of 
Estates. 



Cbtlon 

WSSTEBN PrOYINCB. 

Colombo District 

Negombo District 

Eegalla District 

Batnapara District 

Ealntara District 

NoBTH-WeSTERN PBOyiKCE 

EnruDegala District 

Pattalam District 

Central Proyince. 

Eandy District 

Matale District 

Badalla District 

Nawara Eliya District • . . . 

Northern Proyince. 
Jaffna District 

Eastern Proyince. 

Batticaloa District 

Trinoomalee District 

Southern Proyince. 

GaX\e District 

Matara District 



1,768 



25 
62 
44 
102 
15 



27 
17 



671 
141 
271 
325 



82 



2 

6 



17 
11 



Population. 



Persons. 



206,496 



1,074 
1,886 
3,268 
6,926 
1,002 



2,539 
796 



37,242 
66,225 



628 



78 
277 



596 
649 



Males. 



124,692 



696 
1,372 
2,051 
4,248 

656 



1,527 
631 



76,229 i 44,951 
18,182 10,985 



22,310 
33,954 



332 



62 
208 



414 
897 



Females. 



81,803 



379 

614 

1,217 

2,677 

347 



1,012 
265 



30,278 

7,197 

14,932 

22,271 



196 



16 
69 



181 
252 



266 



OCCUPATIONS. 



STATEMENT OF THE PRINCIPAL OCCUPATIONS OF THE POPULATION 

OP CEYLON. 



Principal OoourATiONS. 



Population of Cqrlon aocording to Nationality 

I. — Professional Glass. 

In employ of General or Local Government. . . . 

Missionary, Clergyman, Minister 

Church, Chapel— Service 

Buddhist Priest 

Yihara Service 

Hindu Prieft 

Temple Service 

Mohammedan ^iest 

Mosque Service 

Barrister, Advocate, Proctor 

Law Student 

Petition, Pleading — Drawer 

Notary Public 

Physician, Surgeon, Medical Practitioner 

Medical Student 

Midwife 

Chemist, Druggist 

Music Teacher, Musician 

Drummer 

Tom-tom Beater 

Actor, Comedian, Dancer, Nautch Girl 

Snake Charmer 

Devil Dancer 

Inspector of Schools, Schoolmaster, Teacher, 

Schoolmistress 

Astrologer 

n.— DoMSSTio Class. 

Hotel — Manager, Keq[>er ; Boarding-house, Best- 
house, Eating-house Keeper 

Domestic Servant (General) 

Groom (Horsekeejper) 

Wash-house Service 

Barber 

in. — CoMMSRciAL Class. 

Merchant 

Commission Agent, Broker 

Accountant, Book-keeper 

Clerk (so returned) 

Shopkeeper (branch undefined) 

Boutique-keeper 



All Baobs. 



Persons. 



2,759,788 



12,948 

422 

110 

6,279 

6S 

1,198 

184 

521 

95 

280 

76 

120 

411 

8,849 

60 

260 

H)7 

168 

181 

1,208 

197 

121 

1,582 

2,720 
201 



712 

42,175 

2,-57 

87 

1,898 



255 
249 
908 
2,498 
582 
15,578 



Males. 



1,469,558 



12,586 

409 

108 

6,279 

64 

1,198 

111 

521 

95 

280 

76 

120 

411 

8,821 

60 

104 
164 
181 

1,208 

116 

80 

1,528 

2,185 
201 



477 

24,255 

2,657 

62 

1,851 



254 
244 
908 
2,498 
581 
18,101 



Females. 



1,290.185 



412 

18 

2 

• • 

4 

« • 

28 



28 

260 
8 

4 



81 

41 

4 

585 



285 
17,920 

• • 

25 

47 



1 
2,472 



pMHOCTiL OOflUPWIOllB. 


A........ 


p™.„ 


«^ 


,w„. 


■n-^-"— "»-"•■«-* 


18,770 
Sfii'i 

aof. 
"w7 

S71 
799 

'ffl 

lOJ 
«0,lB9 

iso,4ai 

!l>7 
77(1 

10^ 

loa 
Boa 

1<,4T7 

«ai 

BM 
4(4 

llfllfl 

8,043 
0,801) 

17,507 
CC7 


lfl,B78 

i 

181 
9,214 
71» 

i 

160,189 
B,1B7 

8,161. 

«7 

109 

18,981) 

75 
11,47B 

am 

1,171 
1,106 

1.188 
•JSi 
666 


8,001 
BB8 

a,6is 

1,615 

M,7i7 
60 

;^ 

aas 

1,688 
MB 

B,B9fi 

11,501 
IM 


KJSf:::::::::::::::::::::::::;:::; 






























































Bsdd^e, Huneu, Wbip-U&ku 

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^■■■-•" "■■ 



























2G8 



Pbikcipal Occupatiohs. 



I 



All Backs. 



Penonfl. 



v.— Imdcstbial Glass {eontinued). 

Poultry, Egg — Seller 

Fishmonger 

Rice, Paddy, Qrain— Seller 

Oram Seller 

Baker, Bread Seller, Bice-cake Seller, Coffee- 

bontique Keeper 

Confectioner 

Vegetable Dealer 

Cooo-nat, Koppara — Seller 

Arrack Distiller 

Liquor — Shopkeeper, Seller 

Arrack Benter, Tavern Keeper, Arrack Sellt r . . 

Toddy Drawer 

Jaggery— Manufacturer, Seller 

GoAee Seller 

C!offee Picker 

Tobacco Seller; Cigar, Snuff— Manufacturer, 

Dealer 

Betel, Areca-nut — Seller 

Cinnamon Seller 

Cinnamon P^-eler 

Tortoise-shell — Worker, Dealer 

Oil— Miller, Monger 

Timber Dealer 

Sawyer 

Cooper 

Timber Feller 

Firewood— Cutter, Seller 

Cane — Worker, Dealer 

Cadjan — Maker, Seller 

Straw Seller '. 

Plumbago Dealer 

Plumbago— Digger, Picker 

Charcoal Burner 

Stone— Cutter, Breaker, Seller 

Brick, Tile— Maker, Seller 

Lime— Burner, Seller 

Boad Labourer 

Railway Labourer 

Potter, Earthenware Dealer 

Salt Dealer 

Water— Carrier, Dealer 

GoldHmith, SilvorHmith, Jeweller 

Gem Digger 

Lapidary 

Tinker 

Brazier 

Blacksmith 

Ironmonger, Hanlware Dealer 

Chauks— Fisher, Dealer 

VI.— InDBFIMITB and NON-PBODUCTrVE 

Class. 

General Labourer 

Artizan (branch undefined) 

Contractor do. 

Renter do. 



216 
8,680 
4,712 

284 

4,566 
202 

1,085 

1,160 

90 

139 

862 

8,280 
416 
590 

2,719 

8,680 

2,810 
214 

1,857 
836 

2,805 
801 

2,197 
828 
561 
468 
165 
168 
158 
90 

1,419 
102 

1,084 
481 
944 

4,188 

6,760 

5,887 
419 
147 

6,278 

1,185 
199 
176 
745 

4,302 
60 
94 



85,188 

1,526 

565 

272 




218 

1,958 

2,028 

iO 

1,091 
142 
587 
845 
98 
189 
854 

8,280 

288 

548 

6 

8,359 

1,580 

214 

1,777 

884 

1,706 

801 

2,197 

828 

561 

175 

157 

29 

149 

90 

1,828 

81 

909 

477 

677 

2,886 

4,599 

8,598 

885 

182 

6.252 

1,185 

199 

176 

745 

4,802 

60 

94 



64,965 
716 
665 
272 



Females. 



4 

1,722 

2,689 

224 

8,475 

60 

448 

805 

1 

• • 

8 

• • 

188 

42 

2,714 

271 
1,280 

• • 

80 

2 

599 



288 

8 

189 

4 

• • 

96 

21 

125 

4 

267 

1,250 

2,170 

2,294 

84 

15 

21 



20,168 
811 



APPENDIX VIT. 

STAPLE IMPORTS OF CEYLON FBOM 1887 TO 1886. 

Cotton MaDafutarw U'lca Fixh (dried aad sailed) ; Cattle. 





clooJs. 


Rlst. 


FlllL 


CilUe. 




V.liie. 


QuMUtj. 


v^«. 


QouUtT, 


Yaln>. 


Nd. 


■sr 




J 


Bq»heUr. 


£ 


Owta. 


PlesHU 


£ 














6,980 


39333 


6,719 




17801 




1S7,SB1 


wo/jia 


lesVa 


B.B27 


327,613 


7301 


"i^S'-f* 


830 




i2a,BOT 


§84.628 


lKa.800 










U66 




IMfiX 


IM.'i.OM 




a.M» 






t^uL, 


1310 


1811 








9,996 






4,709 


rjTn 


1,727 




ilisaa 












6.913 






IBOMB 


1^4,114 


a79,19S 








6,119 


Bniss; 


i;^ 




1SS,B86 


1,700.186 


EBiy)48 












32^ 


I^ 


aBS.SH 


S,ie7.B84 


679,886 


aa^ 






16^197 




^MT 


IHB 


1B6,GS0 


a462.a(8 


S72.940 


84,088 






17.479 


47,187 


^748 




1TB,0M 


saMji.'S 


87a,i<» 








16,18" 




18314 




1§«,76T 


lJlD.fi§fi 


S3»,42(l 


86,391 








4T:2«!t 


36^26 


»H 






347,502 


24,467 








8896 


^364 


iBsa 


imMi 


iMs.m 


413,281 


86.705 








8.607 


174M 


lUl 


««,«* 


axi.m 


888,777 


39,096 








8394 


17698 




1BS,07B 


8,881,798 




80,870 






80,670 


7,961 


16963 


1B5B 








81,000 






81300 




li^ 


IBM 


mos) 


»;ifll,T06 


879,991 








is,ua 


13^ 


36,368 


leu 


aw.aai 


a,8M.I78 


49B.1S7 


64^788 








16364 


S6:3«l 


IBU 


8U.B96 


8,167,B§B 












11317 




IBM 


a£e,4tB 




d5a]B94 


a>.m 






63396 


10375 


31,635 




m,m 




B71.!iM 


48,881 






18,gS4 


iisas 


aslm 


is? 


msw 




7023M 


68,875 








10,776 


36308 


ISRV 


HO.SSl 


8483JJ04 


638,4SS 








65,989 


10314 


34^ 


leni 


MT,464 


4081 JSS 


S»6,itlfl 


Bi!h83 






ei*<3 


B,76S 


38;7S0 




NH^ 


4,318,801 


ijioojei 


61.042 








4490 




lem 


iwiTtoa 


4,416.881 


13H.74G 


60,B0S 








11065 


48,eBS 




OBT.aia 


a.BiS,sBe 


1,183,019 








7S.W8 


7307 


98309 




HG,au 


4JiSl,411 


1.1»,434 


68.970 






6.1.9711 


8.896 


33:^ 




BH^lO 


8,m,8ao 




70.190 








9069 




ISI 




4,sis,aa7 




71.709 








8313 


6o:ieo 


lew 


msIbos 


4,16fijll6 


1396,694 








76.394 


7,893 


69489 


idsg 


TM,W1 


4,iD8ai8 










75489 


6:799 


40:SS8 


JES" 


9J«^ 


4,780,882 












7,60S 




1871 


H40fll7 


4,278.708 


lflB0,68O 


IBfili 








10.058 


64307 




SIB,4M 


iixn^aca 


1,744,673 


88,983 








14,196 


B4396 




ses.DBo 


6.708,142 




108.189 






108469 


14719 


83,650 




awflBi 






98,648 








1S.511 




i'^S 






,714,763 


msm 








16382 


81338 


H78 


Bsa.Bio 


6,866,646 


il03,D84 


87,696 






B7.B9H 


17391 


91361 




TlB.aSB 


flJWttlflO 


,261 .Boa 










28368 


1033a:i 




48-i,aio 


6,068,962 


.167,414 


84:429 






S4|42S 


17^93 




iuTO 






,9ft,^,»54 


71.833 






H3S3 


97.483 








8,091,989 


l,BSO,tr?S 


90396 






90398 


11373 


76343 




eia.y7B 


0,08U,BM 












6:683 


38,776 




Ma,ii2 






B3;a4i 








9:681 




.saa 




b;740,184 


1.867,610 


120378 








11.980 




'^ 


Ee7,»sl 

B17,31S 


I'^m^w 


1.7B4J100 


137,161 






101,619 
137,181 




60.388 


1886 


«7,soa 




l!su9*)7 


110,050 








47:iOB 


87;796 



fffn:. 


-AUrtuni 


niilk 




"K 


















pur^«uiai£. 



la Indik, hsV0 taken 



APPENDIX VIII. 

CEYLON: "THE EDEN OF THE EASTERN 

WAVE.'' 

The Land of Cinnamortf Palms, Tea, Coffee, Cinchona, the 
Chocolate Plant ; Pearls, Rubies, and Sapphires ; of 
ancient ruins second only to those of Egypt ; of Tropical 
Scenery the finest in the world, 

[Statistics Arranged and Compiled by J. Ferguson, of Ceylon Observer 
and Tropical Agriculturist, at the request of Sin A. N. Biboh, 
E.C.M.G., Commissioner for Ceylon to the Indian and Colonial 
Exhibition of 1886 ; for exhibition in the Ceylon Court.] * 

Area in square miles ... 25,000 
Population in 1887 ... 2,900,000 

Divided into 8 provinces, administered by Governor and 

about 80 coven ated Civil Servants. 
I^ac^s .-—Sinhalese, 1,930,000; Tamils, 726,000 ; Moormen 

(Arab descendants), 200,000; Eurasians, 19,000; 

Malays, 9,000 ; Europeans, 5,500 ; Veddahs, 2,500 ; 

others, 8,000. 
Religions: — Buddhists, 1,760,000; Sivaites (Hindus), 

600,000 ; Mohammedans, 200,000 ; Boman Catholics, 

210,000; Protestants, 65,000; others, 66,000. 
Longest River: — Mahaweliganga — 150 miles (Ganges of 

Ptolemy). 
Highest Mountains: — Pidurutalagala, 8,296 feet; Adam's 

Peak, 7,853; 150 mountain peaks from 8,000 to 

7,000 feet. 

* A few later results have been embodied in this page. — J. F. 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 271 



Towns : — Capital, Colombo, 120,000 people, with splendid 
Breakwater, great steamer coaling and calling port of 
the East ; Kandy (ancient capital), 24,000 ; Point-de- 
Galle, 85,000 ; Trincomalee (with grand harhour), 
11,000. 

Wild Animah: — Elephants, Cheetah, Black Bear, Buffaloe, 
Boar, Elk and Small Deer ; Eagle ; Crocodile ; Shark. 

Revenue ... ... .*. ... ... d61,800,000 

Trade .-—Total Annual Trade ^68,000,000 

Total Imports from United Kingdom dBl, 260,000 

Total Exports to do. ... ^62,250,000 

Total of Shipping entered and cleared annually, ahout 
4,000,000 tons. 

Roads : — 2,500 miles, metalled and gravelled, among the 
best in the world. 

Railways : — 185 miles — first class Railway — 5 J feet gauge. 

Canals: — 170 miles. 

Education : — Total of Scholars, 120,000, or about 25 per 
cent, of children of school-going age ; 1,200 miles of 
Telegraph wire ; 185 Post Offices. 



Area Cultivated: — 

Probable Extension of Cultivation within 
10 years to 
Details of Cultivation : — 

Under Palm trees (Coco, Palmyra, Areka, 
Kitul, &c.) 
Other Fruit-trees (Orange, Mango, 
Bread and Jak Fruit, &c.) 
xj\j» Xwice ... ... ... ... 

Other Grain 

Garden vegetables, (Cassava, 

Yams, &o. 
Coffee, Arabian and Liberian 

^ ctt ••• ... ... ... 

(to rise shortly to 

Cinnamon, Cardamom, and other 

opices ... ... ... .. 

Chocolate plants (Cacao) 

Cinchona Bark (Quinine) trees .. 
Do. Tobacco 

Do. Eubber and Gum trees 

Do. Fibre-yielding plants 

Do. Essential oil-grass (Citronella) .. 



Do. 



Do. 
Do. 

Do. 
Do. 

Do. 

Do. 
Do. 



Acres. 
8,130,000 

4,600,000 



660,000 

50,000 
660,000 
150,000 

100,000 

180,000 

150,000 

200,000) 

60,000 
15,000 
40,000 
25,000 
5,000 
10,000 
20,000 



272 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

Exports of Tea have risen from 25,000Ib. in 1878 to 

4.878,0001b. in 1885, and to 7,860,0001b. in 

1886; expected to reach 24,000,0001b. in 1888; and 

40,000,0001b. in 1890. 

Do. of Cinchona Bark have risen from 200,0001b. in 

1878 to 14,700,0001b. in 1886. 
Do. of Cocoa (from Cacao plant) from 10 cwt. in 1878 

to 18,056 cwt. in 1886. 
Do. of Cardamoms (Spice) from 14,0001b. in 1878 to 

289,0001b. in 1886. 
Do. of Cinnamon from 650,0001b. in 1850 to 2J mil- 
lion lb. of late years. 
Do. of Coconut Oil has risen to 400,000 cwt. from 
85,000 cwt. in 1850. 
Total crop of Coconuts in one year is equal to 700,000,000 

nuts. 
200,000 Tamil Coolies find work on plantations ; likely to 
require 800,000 ere long with tea. 



SUMMAEY OF INFOEMATION BEGARDING 

CEYLON. 

Its Natural Features, Climate, Progress, Agriculture, 
Commerce, Industries, Public Works, Religions, 
Sights, &c. 

[Compiled and corrected up to March, 1887, by A. M. & J. Ferguson.] 

CEYLON [part, as many believe, of the region known 
to the Hebrews as Ophir and Tarshish] : — Taprobane of 
the Greeks and Romans (from Tamraparni, Sanskrit^ and 
Tambapani, Pali) ; Serendib of the Arab voyagers ; Lanka 
of the Continental Hindus ajud the Sinhalese ; Ilangei of 
the Tamils ; Lankapura of the Malays ; Tewalankd of the 
Siamese ; Seho or Teho of the Burmese ; Ceilao of the 
Portuguese, &c. Pearliform Island (** pearl-drop on the 
brow of Ind"), bounded by the Indian Ocean, Bay of Ben- 
gal, and Gulf of Mannar ; greatest length and breadth 
267 by 140 miles ; circumference, 760 miles. Lat. 5° 58^ to 
9° 51^' N. ; Long. 79° 41^ 4'^ to Sl'^ 54^ 60^' E. Sun rises 
5i hours before he shines on Britain. Light from 6 to 6 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 273 

nearly all tbe year round ; but the sun sets about 42 
minutes later in July than in November, indeed twilight in 
June occasionally exists till after 7 p.m. 

ABEA. 

About 24,702 square miles; or 15,809,280 acres, of 
which about one-sixth comprises hilly and mountainous 
zones, lying in the centre of the southern half of the 
island. Maritime districts generally level, and northern 
end of island broken up into flat narrow peninsula and 
small islets. 

DISTANCES 

(approximate) : from nearest point of Southern India, via 
*^ Adam's Bridge " and Bamisseram to Tallaimanaar, 60 
miles; from Madras to Point Pedro, 250; to Galle, 545. — 
To Colombo : from Tuticorin, 450 ; Madras, 615 ; Cal- 
cutta, 1,885; Bombay, 900; Aden, 2,400; Suez, 3,800; 
Port Said, 3,950 ; Malta, 4,550; Gibraltar, 1,950; Brin- 
disi, 4,500 ; Marseilles, 5,750 ; Cape, 5,000 ; England by 
Cape, 15,000 ; by Suez Canal to Southampton, 6,500 ; 
from Mauritius via Aden, 4,500 ; direct, about 2,500 ; 
Singapore, 1,600 ; Hong Kong, 8,000 ; Yokohama, Japan, 
4,700; Freemantle, Western Australia, 8,000; King 
George's Sound or Albany, 3,400 ; Adelaide, 4,400 ; Mel- 
bourne, 4,900 ; Sydney, 5,450 {via Torres Straits, 6,500); 
Brisbane, via Torres Straits, 5,900; New Zealand (Auck- 
land) 7,000 miles. The distances generally are counted 
from Colombo. • 

mOHEST MOUNTAINS. 

Pidurutalagala (rising over the Sanatarium of Ceylon, 
Nuwara Eliya) 8,296 feet, or nearly 1,000 feet higher than 
Adam's Peak (7,353), usually described as the highest, be- 
cause it is to voyagers the most conspicuous mountain in 
Ceylon. This latter is really the fifth in altitude, being 
inferior to Kirigalpotta (7,882), Totapola (7,746), and 
Kuduhugala (7,607), as well as to Pidurutalagala. Fully 
150 mountains, ranging from 8,000 to 7,000 feet. (245 
recorded trigonometrical altitudes over 1,000 feet, 145 over 
8,000 feet, 118 over 4,000 feet, 58 over 5,000 feet, 28 over 
6,000 feet, and 10 over 7,000 feet.) Most of the mountain 
ranges on which tea and cinchona or coffee is cultivated 

19 



274 Ceyhii in the Jubilee Year. 

are wooded to their snmmits ; but vast prairie tracts of 
hill region, chiefly on the eastern side, bear little beyond 
coarse lemon-grass. Mountain scenery generally rich and 
grand, 

OBEATEST BIVERS AND WATERFALLS. 

The Mahaweliganga (Ganges of Ptolemy), nearly 150 
miles from its source, in its longest feeder the Agra-oya 
under Kirigalpotta (the " milk -stone-book " mountain) 
close to Horton's Plains, to its double debouchure near the 
great harbour of Trincomalee on the east coast. This 
river drains nearly one-sizth of the area of the island. 
Eivers not naturally favourable for navigation, except near 
the sea, where they expand into backwaters. Steam 
navigation by means of small vessels introduced on 
Colombo lake, between Colombo and Negombo on canal, 
and shortly expected on Kaluganga, and on Kelani river 
to Awisawella. The Kelani entering sea near Colombo ; 
Ealuganga at Ealutara ; Mahaoya, near Negombo ; the 
Ginganga, near Galle; Walawe-oya near Matara, are some 
of the other numerous rivers. Eivers in mountain regions 
frequently fall over precipices, forming beautiful waterfalls. 
One in Dimbula and another in lower Maskeliya, both 
between 200 and 800 feet high ; in Eastern Haputale one 
said to be 535 feet ; and the foot of Bamboda Pass, cele- 
brated for a series of beautiful falls. No proper surveys 
available ; but a series of cascade-falls on Eurunduoya in 
Maturata measured from top to bottom, when nearly full 
of water, about 920 feet. In the arid regions of the north 
of the island some of the river beds which run full of 
water in the rainy months of the north-east monsoon 
(middle of October to middle of January) show only ex- 
panses of sand with a few pools in the dry or south-west 
monsoon season, during which the north-east of the island 
is almost rainless, while torrents are deluging the south- 
west coast, 

LAKES. 

None inland, but ruins of magnificent tanks (Sea of 
Prakkrama, Minneriya, Kanthalai, Giant's Tank, &c.) in 
north and east of island ; and fine, extensive backwaters 
on the sea-coast, such as the Negombo Lake, the Lakes of 
Bolgoda, Mullaittivu, Batticaloa, &c. The freshwater 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 275 

lakeB, which add so much to the beauty of Colombo, 
Eaudy, and Nuwara Eliya are artificial or partly so. The 
Labugama Reservoir for the Colombo Water Supply, 
covering 176 acres, among hills, 80 miles from Colombo, 
forms a beautiful lake. 

TIDES. 

Generally almost imperceptible (at Colombo the rise and 
fall never exceed 8 feet, more generally 2 feet to 2 feet 
6 inches on the springs, and 6 to 9 inches on the neaps), 
but in the debouchures of some backwaters and rivers the 
tide is more noticeable : at Panadure the tidal current 
runs in at the rate of 4 miles an hour. Powei*ful currents 
also sweep round the coasts, some of them owing their 
origin to the Indian Ocean, 

OEOLOGY AND MINBBALOOY. 

The geological formations met with in Ceylon are of the 
PalsBOzoic, Mezozoic and recent age. The greatest portion 
of the island consists of ancient sedimentary beds, doubt- 
ful whether deposited sea or lake, as metamorphoses have 
obliterated all traces of fossil remains. Mountain ranges 
formed of primary and metamorphic rock. Principal rock : 
gneiss, with beds of laterite (locally named ** cabook ") 
and dolomite, according to some authorities — described by 
others as crystalline marble or primary limestone. Plenty 
of iron, but no trace of coal. Manganese, gold and 
platinum, but in such small quantities not apparently 
worth gathering. Molybdenum, cobalt, nickel, tin, copper, 
and arsenic also occur. Plumbago the only mineral of 
commercial importance. Cretaceous beds of Ja&a of 
Mezozoic age. Nitre in caves. Salt forms naturally, and 
is also manufactured in sufficient quantity at Puttalam, 
Ja&a, and Hambantota, to supply the consumption of 
the island. Calcareous tufa met with at Bintenna de- 
posited from warm springs. Hot springs at Trincomalee 
and other places, but no direct evidence of present volcanic 
action (unless in Eelebokka valley), and earthquakes seldom 
perceptible, save as the outer verge of disturbances in Java 
and Eastern Archipelago, Gneastone, however, underlies 
gneiss at Kadugannawa, and with vitre factions is observed 
in fissures of rocks at Trincomalee. Springs of sulphuretted 



276 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

hydrogen Bixnilar to Harrogate water occur in Puttalam 
district Large tracts of alluvium occur in the Nuwara 
Elija and other districts. Process of slow upheaval be- 
lieved to be in operation on western coast, with compen- 
sating disintegration of mountain ranges. Becent forma- 
tion : a breccia formed of particles of disintegrated rock 
held together by calcareous and ferruginous matter near 
Negombo and along coast. Gems abundant, especially about 
Batnapura (** city of gems'M, but, with exception of blue 
sapphire and red ruby, of slignt value. A flawless sapphire 
is rare, and good rubies are excessively scarce. Zircon or 
•* Matara Diamond,'* and amethyst, common. Chrysoberyl 
(or " cat's-eye ") not uncommon, curious, and of late years 
prized in Britain. Moonstones (very beautiful form of 
"adularia") and "cinnamon stones" (brown garnets) 
common. Spinel and tourmaline very abundant. Many 
rocks and river beds sparkle with red garnets, beautiful but 
intrinsically valueless. Ceylon celebrated for fine pearls, 
chiefly from oyster or mussel banks of north-west coast. 
Gemming license in Ceylon is BlO per annum, subject to 
certain published rules. 

CLIMATE. 

Varies in different parts, from hot and arid plains of 
north and east, to warm and humid south-west coast, and 
cool and wet mountain regions; but, for the tropics, 
generally healthy. Fever zone extends below middle 
altitudes of mountain ranges, and banks of rivers fre- 
quently unhealthy. Fever seldom or never occurs above 
8,000 feet altitude, and is rare within the influence of the 
sea breezes. The hot months at Colombo are February, 
March and April, and sometimes (when the monsoon is 
delayed) May; when all, who can, epcape to the hiU regions, 
Nuwara EHya especially. The heat in Ceylon, however, 
seldom reaches 90° in the shade : 95^° in April being the 
maximum in Colombo — 96*8° on 22nd February, 1885, 
actual highest — where the mean of the year nearly touches 
81°, sea-breezes tempering the heat for a large portion of 
the year. At Trincomalee the maximum was 101*7° on 
10th May, 1886. The rate of mortality in Ceylon towns 
ranges from 1-66 per cent, for Jafi^na (Colombo 1*76) to 
4-06 for Kurunegala. The military death-rate in Ceylon 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 277 

is down to 25 in 1,000 ; and this rate is capable of still 
farther reduction by sanitary measures. The opening of 
the Suez Canal and the facilities offered by steam com- 
munication have led to abandonment of Nuwara Eliya as 
a military sanatarium, invalid soldiers being sent ''home" 
instead. The perfection of climate in Oeylon is supposed to 
be found at and around Bandarawela (distant 118 miles 
from Colombo), on the plateau of the Uva principality, at 
8,900 feet elevation, the average temperature being 68°, 
with an average annual rainfall of 78 inches falling on 
126 days ; but the climate of Lindula, Bogawantalawa, 
Udapussellawa and Nuwara Eliya is also very good. 

METEOROLOGY. 

Exposed to both monsoons (S.W. from April to Septem- 
ber, N.E. from November to February), but storms seldom 
violent. Ceylon is most fortunate in being outside the 
region of the cyclones peculiar at certain seasons to the 
Bay of Bengal ; also the hurricanes of the Mauritius seas, 
and the volcanic disturbances of Java and the Eastern 
Archipelago. Eainfall : 85 at Hambantota ; 88 inches at 
Mannar ; 48 inches at Jaffna ; 58 at Anuradhapura ; 52^ 
at Batticaloa ; 61^ at Trincomalee ; 78^ at Bandarawella 
in Uva ; 81^ at Kandy ; 85^ at Matale ; 87^ at Colombo ; 
93 J at Kurunegala; 100 inches Nuwara Eliya; 106^ at 
Kalutara ; 127 Eamboda ; and from 117 to 150 on the 
Dimbula, Dikoya and Maskeliya ranges, outside the table- 
lands of Nuwara Eliya at 6,000 feet, and Horton Plains 
7,000 feet altitude ; 150^ at Eatnapiira ; 152} at Nawala- 
pitiya ; 159 at Awisawella ; and 200 at Templestowe, 
Ambagamuwa ; and the mHximum 228 at Padupola, north- 
east of Adam's Peak. In parts of Yakdessa the annual 
rainfall is often over 200 inches, as much as 50 inches of 
which have been known to fall in one month, and a dozen 
inches in as many hours. Temperature varies from a 
mean of 58° F. at the mountain sanatarium of Nuwara 
Eliya ; 65 to 66 at Langdale, Dimbula, and at Bogawanta- 
lawa, Dikoya ; a mean of 72 at Badulla, 75^ Kandy, and 
81 at Colombo, 80 Oalle, Batnapura, Puttalam, Hamban- 
tota, and Anuradhapura ; about 82 at Batticaloa, Jaffna, 
Mannar, and a fraction higher at Trincomalee. The ex* 
tremes in the shade range from below freezing point at 



278 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Nuwara Eliya to 95*8 at Colombo and 101*7 at Trinco- 
malee. Except in the north and east, climate moist as 
well as hot. Fertility dae more to this circumstance than 
to richness of soil generally. Fruits of temperate re- 
gions fEul from continuous warm moisture, but long-con- 
tinued and extreme heat, acting as a wintering (the roots 
being laid bare), favours grape cultivation at Jaffna : suc- 
cessful growth also in Dumbera valley and near Nuwara 
£liya« Snow is unknown. Hail not unfrequent in hill dis- 
tricts in very hot weather. Ice forms occasionally at Nuwara 
Eliya under clear radiating sky during the rainless months, 
December to February. Electrical phenomena — thunder, 
lightning, waterspouts, &c. — frequent and sometimes grand, 
and Ughtning occasionally destructive to life, especially to 
natives who cHmb trees or take refuge from rain under 
them. Coconut palms, papaya, plantain, and other pithy 
or sappy trees and shrubs are peculiarly fitted as lightning 
conductors. Lightning so frequently seen without thunder 
being heard, that Arabs compare a liar to Ceylon lightning. 
Optical phenomena, such as rainbows, Buddha rays, an- 
thelia, mirage, occasionally very striking. Sunsets fre- 
quently beautiful, and zodiacal light sometimes seen. 
Moonlight and starry nights often splendid, and, when 
perfectly cloudless, pecuUarly cool. 

BOTANY. 

Ceylon, while presenting most points of resemblance in 
its fauna and flora to the neighbouring continent of India, 
differs in some respects, and assimilates to the Malayan 
Archipelago. There can be little or no doubt that cinna- 
mon, for which Ceylon has always been famous, is really 
indigenous to this island. So doubtless, with rice. On 
the other hand, its best-known productions, coffee and 
coconuts, are introductions (the first certainly, the second 
also in the judgment of botanists), also tea, cacao, and 
cinchona. Most South American plants readily adapt 
themselves to the island, as is proved by the recent success 
of the cinchonas, cacao, and rubber trees. Tea is also 
growing luxuriantly in a climate peculiarly favourable to 
leafage. Ceylon is peculiarly noted for ferns and balsams ; 
while orchids abound. Ebony, satin wood, and other fine 
cabinet woods, with serviceable timber, are plentiful in the 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 279 

forests. Calamander, the most beautifal of the cabinet 
woods, is becoming very scarce, only a few trees being 
reported as left. In the higher mountain regions, familiar 
European forms mingle with the richest tropical vegetation. 
Palms and bamboos are specially beautiful and luxuriant : 
few objects in nature being more magnificent than a talipot 
palm in flower, and few more elegant than the slender 
areka palm, or the tall bending green bamboo of the moun- 
tain forests below Nuwara Eliya. The coconut palm 
luxuriates along the western and south-western coasts, 
and indeed far inland up the river valleys, just as the 
palmyra, with its 500 different uses to the natives, abounds 
in the Jaffna peninsula. Many of the forest trees, such as 
the lagerstroemia regina, red rhododendron, and scarlet- 
blossomed cotton tree, bear beautiful flowers ; while the 
vari-coloured foliage of the jungle cinnamon, ironwood, &c., 
relieve the deep green of the forest, looking at a distance 
like rich floral masses. There are few parts of the world 
so rich in fungi as Ceylon, and one, new to science, has 
within the past generation, almost annihilated the great 
coffee enterprise of the island. Backwaters are rich in 
mangroves. Some of the seaweeds are also very beautiful. 
The indigenous species of plants enumerated by Dr. Tri- 
men, of the Eoyal Botanic Gardens, Peradeniya, include : 
— Dicotyledons, 2,019 ; Monocotyledons, 710 ; Filices, 
LycopodiacesB, and MarsileacesB, 260 — total 2,989 : double 
the flora of Britain, and about one-thirtieth of all species 
in the world yet described. 

ANIMALS. 

Monkeys are numerous, five species of wanderoo 
(langurs), of which no less than four are recognized as 
pecuHar to the island. The capped-monkey (macacus) 
famous for its grimaces, and capacity for learning tricks; 
the loris, a queer creature, the eyes much valued as 
medicine by tiie natives ! Bats are very numerous in 
genera and species, flying foxes (pteropus) vampires, leaf- 
nosed, horse-shoe, and the beautiful painted bat, and 
others; musk and other shrews plentiful, a hill species 
peculiar to the island ; the sloth-bear common in the low 
country ; jackals everywhere ; otters common in suitable 
places, from the shores to the highest hills ; no tigers or 



280 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

lions (though the native name of the people signifies the 
"lion descended**); the panther or leopard (erroneously 
called cheetah locally) is iJie largest feline, ana is common 
in most places ; the tiger and red-spotted cats generally 
distributed ; lesser civet numerous, its presence bcong often 
betrayed by its powerful scent ; a paradoxurus, peculiar to 
the island, and palm cat common ; mongooses numerous 
of five species, a very distinct one (onychogale Maccarthia 
of Gray) peculiar to the island; squirrels abound, two 
species of the remarkable flying squirrel, several small 
and pretty ground squirrels (equally at home on trees as 
well) can be seen and heard on all sides, and are amusing 
to watch ; rats and mice only too numerous, the jeeboa or 
jumping rats, bandicoot and bush or coffee rat may be 
mentioned, a rat and a mouse also peculiar to the island ; 
the porcupine generally found through hill and lowlands, 
as is also the black-necked hare; that strange mail- 
covered but toothless creature, the pangolin, is found up to 
a considerable elevation, as well as in the low country. 
Elephants, the lords of the forest, specially famous, are 
found from the sea-coast to tbe highest points of the 
island, are said to be decreasing in some districts, but 
still numerous in others. [Large numbers formerly killed 
by sportsmen; 1,600 (captured by being snared, or enclosed 
in kraals) exported to India from Northern Province iu 
five years ended 1862. A license now required to shoot 
elephants, and the number killed or captured has much 
decreased: only 1,685 exported in eighteen years, from 
1862 to 1880, valued at E462,000, a royalty of E200 for 
every elephant exported having no doubt checked the 
trade. Eoyalty reduced to ElOO in 1882 ; exports in six 
years, 1880 to 1885, equalled 182 elephants, E96,885.] 
The wild boar common everywhere ; buffaloes common iu 
the wilder parts still, but their numbers much reduced 
during the last decade or two from disease and the rifle. 
Of deer, the fine sambur (locally elk), the spotted, the 
paddy-field, the red (rumtjae) and little mouse-deer 
(miminna) still common, and afford good sport to the 
hunter. Whales, dugongs, porpoises, and dolphins repre- 
sent the marine carnivora which sport around the coast, 
where also the screaming cries of sea-eagles and the 
osprey may be heard, which find their "echo" in the 
distant hills from the large beautiful crested eagle peculiar 



Ceylon : Summary of Information, 281 

to Ceylon, and others of the family; peregrine falcons have 
their stations here and there; kestrels, harriers, and many 
species of hawks numerous ; owls of many species, from 
the fine forest-eagle owl to the little scops, not forgetting 
the renowned devil-bird, all fairly numerous ; the sports- 
man is attracted by the numerous pea-fowls, jungle, and 
spur-fowl (these two peculiar to Ceylon), and quails, which 
are common in many places. The frog-mouth and several 
goatsuckers, swifts, including the species remarkable for 
making edible nests, swallows common, rollers, king- 
fishers, bee-eaters, the scarlet-breasted trogan, several 
species of sun bird (called humming birds locally), repre- 
sent the feathered beauties of the Island ; tailor and weaver 
birds, the wonderful nest builders, wagtails, and warblers 
in winter only (so they sing not here), but remind 
Europeans of sweet home; many varieties of thrushes, 
bablers, orioles, bulbuls, flycatchers, chats, and drongos 
everywhere; the splendid mountain jay and its sober- 
coloured friend the grey starling are peculiar to the 
island ; grakles, munias (locally ortolans), larks, and 
pipits numerous ; parakeets, hornbills, barbets, and gaudy 
woodpeckers, each having representatives peculiar to the 
island, and many other species so common as to be a 
marked feature in woodland retreats of hill and dale ; a 
beautiful woodpigeon, paraquets, peculiar to Ceylon, the 
rock-pigeon, many species of fruit pigeons and doves, a 
titmouse, a lovely nuthatch, crows and shrikes, the 
ubiquitous magpie robin, the long-tailed jungle robin, 
and blackbird are fine songsters, the jungle robin inferior 
only to the nightingale itself; many others have songs, 
like Annie Laurie's, low and sweet, so are not noticed by 
casual observers. Not less interesting and extensive is 
the list of marsh and sea birds : the famous Marabon and 
other storks, the gigantic and other herons, beautiful 
egrets and bitterns of several species, the painted and 
other snipes, sandpipers, plover, dotterel, the cock of the 
reeds, the purple and other gallimules, and rails numer- 
ous in suitable places. The singular jacanus or water- 
pheasant, the scarlet flamingo, ducks of many kinds, the 
dab-chick, gulls, terns, snake-birds (darter), cormorants, 
and pelicans common round the coast and tanks ; frigate- 
birds and petrels occasionally, altogether making up a 
wonderfully diversified list of fur and feathers for so small 



282 Ceylon in the Jubilee Yeat. 

an area, over 860 species of birds having been recognized 
to date, of which no less than 45 are believed to be peculiar 
to the island. 

The following reptiles are found in Ceylon : — Land 
tortoise, one ; fresh water, one ; fresh water t*irtle, one ; 
marine turtles, four ; crocodiles, two ; water lizards, two ; 
skinks, five; acontiads, four; geckos, sixteen; agames (or 
bloodsuckers), fifteen ; chameleon, one ; snakes of fifteen 
difi'erent groups, about sixty, eight of which are venemous 
and three deadly, whilst about twenty-three sea snakes are 
found on the coast, all said to be deadly. Of ground and 
tree frogs, forty ; and one burrowing batrachian. 

Eiver fish, chiefly carp, are few in number and of 
inferior quality. Better kinds might be introduced: 
perches introduced Nuwera Eliya lake, and experiment with 
trout about to be made. There are from 500 to 700 
dififerent kinds of sea fish, mainly species of mackerel, to 
which the salmon-like seer-fish belongs, with sharks and 
rays. No cod, but sword and saw fish, mullet, perches, 
lobsters, crabs, prawns, *' beche de mer," chanks, edible 
and pearl oysters. Sea and land shells numerous and 
beautiful. The floor of the sea in certain parts is studded 
with richly-coloured corallines and the softer zoophytes, 
while the waters swarm with star and jelly fish and 
infusoria, so that frequently the waves, in breaking, dis- 
play a line of phosphorescence, chiefly caused by the 
noctiluca miliaris. 

Perhaps there is no sea-coast in the world richer in 
fishes and shells, and some of the fishes described have a 
right to the title ** odd." Mr. Edgar Layard has described 
perches which "walk across country" (allied to those 
which Dr. John, of Tranquebar, found climbing palmyra 
trees) ; and the late Eev. £. Boake made acquaintance 
with air-breathing species which flourish in mud, but 
drown in pure water, and others which, disdaining the 
marsupial pouch possessed by the ** sea-horses," carry 
their young in their mouths. Fishes actually live in the 
hot wells near Trincomalee in a temperature of 115<^. 
The natives of Ceylon are great consumers of fish, the 
Buddhists salving their consciences by the subterfuge that 
they do not kill the fish, they only take them out of the 
water. 

Myriads of insects, including butterflies, beetles, bees, 



Ceylon : Summary of Information^ 283 

wasps, mosquitoes; white, black and red ants; ticks, 
scorpions, centipedes, tarantulas, multitudes of curious 
spiders, &c., are found in Ceylon, and the periodical 
swarms of butterflies, which proceed in the teeth of the 
prevailing winds, are peculiarly interesting. Many of the 
butterflies, moths (including atlas moth, cinnamon moth, 
and the variety which yields the tusser silk), beetles, and 
dragon-flies, are exceedingly beautiful. Efforts to domes- 
ticate bees have not been very successful hitherto : two or 
three wild varieties. Leaf-insects and '' praying mantis " 
curious, and whole regions resound to the incessant noise 
of the cicada or '* knife-grinder." Coconut beetles, cock- 
chafers and their grubs, and coccus, known as coffee bug, 
very injurious. Grasshoppers and locusts occasionally 
destructive over limited areas. A species of wasp builds 
pendant nests (chiefly on coconut trees) six feet long. 
Spiders* webs sometimes so numerous, large and strong as 
almost to check the progress of travellers through forests. 
Land leeches excessively troublesome in the damp forests 
of the lower hills ; Indian medicinal leech common. 

HISTORICAL NOTES. 

From conquest by Wijaya, Prince from Northern India, 
about B.C. 548, to deposition of Sri Wikrama Baja Sinha, 
last King of Kandy, in 1815, Sinhalese annals record one 
liundred and sixty sovereigns. Portuguese first visited 
Ceylon 1505, erected fort at Colombo 1518. Dutch first 
visited Ceylon 1602, landed forces in 1640, and ousted the 
Portuguese in 1658, so that Portuguese occupation lasted 
140 years. Dating from their landing in 1640 to the 
capitulation of Colombo in 1796, the Dutch occupation 
lasted 156 years ; or 188, if the 18 years of warfare with the 
Portuguese are excluded. Acquired by England : Mari- 
time Provinces, 1796 (separated from Madras Presidency 
and made Crown Colony 1798) ; Kandyan Kingdom, 1815. 
Torture, compulsory labour, and slavery, successively 
abolished 1808, 1832, and 1844. Trial by jury introduced 
1811. Kandyan polyandry and polygamy (prematurely) 
prohibited 1856 ; law relaxed 1869. There was a formid- 
able rebellion in 1817-18 in the Kandyan Provinces, and 
again a feeble rising, also of Kandy ans, in 1848. The 
Kandyans, equally with the rest of the population of 



284 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Ceylon, are now loyal, contented, and pacific, so that the 
small military force (about 1,000 infantry and artillery) 
which the colony supports is scarcely required, since about 
760 volunteers (Ceylon Light Infantry) and a strong body 
(1,600) of police are more than sufficient for the repression 
of any possible internal disturbance (religious or rice riots 
the only public form experienced), and it is believed for 
repelling (with the artillery), what we may deem impossible, 
sudden piratical attack. Ceylon, out of her small force, 
yielded valuable aid to India in repressing the mutiny of 
1857, and Colombo has been found a convenient depot 
for the dispatch of troops with reference to wars in China, 
New Zealand, Egypt, and South Africa, for which parts 
regiments have been taken from Ceylon. 

ANTIQUITIES. 

Besides tanks, important and ancient Hindu and Budd- 
hist temples and other ruins at Dondra, Anuradhapura, 
Poloniiaruwa, Mihintalle, Segiri, &c., the Jetawanarama 
Dagoba at Anuradhapura, originally 816, is still 269 feet 
high, or more than half the altitude of the great Egyptian 
Pyramid, diameter at base 896 feet, side of square 779 
feet. The sacred bo-tree {Jicus religiosa) at this place is 
believed to be one of the oldest historical trees in the 
world, perhaps over 2,100 years. The Maligawa at Eandy 
is famous as containing the so-called tooth of Buddha — 
a piece of discoloured ivory. At DambuUa is a vast rock 
temple ; while the small Aluwihara, near Matale, is 
interesting as the place where the Buddhist doctrines are 
said to have been reduced to writing about a century b.c. 
[See Burrow's ** Buried Cities of Ceylon."] 

POPULATION. 

(Results of Census of 1881 : 1 per cent, can be added for 

each year since.) 

2,759,788 (over 2,900,000 probably in 1887) ; 112 to 
square mile, ranging from 16 in North- Central Province 
to 216 in Western. Races (estimated) : Sinhalese (Kandyau 
and maritime), 1,846,000; Tamils, 687,240; Moormen, 
184,600; Malays, 18,895; Javanese, Kafirs or Negroes, 
Afghans, Arabs, Persians, Parsees, &c., 7,849 ; Veddahs, 
2,228; European descendants, 17,886; Europeans, 4,886. 



Ceylon : Summary of Information, 285 

[About 200,000 of the Tamils are immigrants, balance of 
nearly 8 millions who came from Southern India (chiefly 
to labour temporarily on coffee estates) in 45 years ending 
1885, and who have settled down here ; besides which 
there is a floatmg Tamil population of nearly 200,000 
more. Nearly one-fourth of the Europeans are military 
and families. Effective military number about 1,000. 
Native soldiery (since the disbandment of the Ceylon 
Bifle Regiment) consist of 88 Hindu gun lascars. 'Total 
Military (volunteers : European and native), with women 
and children, say 1,800. Constituents of European popula- 
tion, wives and families included: Military, 1,250; planters, 
4,000 ; colonial service (civil servants proper number only 
75, with 15 writers) 900; merchants and their emploves, 
clergymen, pliysicians, storekeepers, railway employes, 
&c., 1,200. There are of all classes about 8.400 lawyers, 
advocates, and proctors in Ceylon, with 600 notaries ; 
800 clergymen and missionaries (450 in census) ; 155 
physicians and surgeons (besides 8,000 native vederales) ; 
200 justices of the peace and unofficial magistrates.] 



POLITICAL DIVISIONS. 

[The latest regular Census was that of 1881.] 

Eight provinces, viz. : Western, 8,456 miles ; 897,829 
{)opulation ; 260 to square mile. North- Western, 8,021 
miles; 298,827 population; 97 to square mile. Southern, 
1,980 miles; 488,520 population; 219 to square mile. 
Eastern, 867 miles; 127,555 population; 86 to square 
mile. Northern, 8,171 miles ; 802,500 population ; 95 to 
square mile. Central (as reduced), 2,008 miles ; 810,000 
population. North- Central, 4,067 miles; 66,146 popula- 
tion ; 16 to square mile. At the beginning of 1886, the 
Uva Principality was separated from the Central Province 
and made an eighth province, of 165,672 population and 
4,026 square miles in area. Provinces sub-divided into 
korales or counties, and minor divisions, such as pattus, 
&c. [Besides municipalities and local boards in the chief 
towns, and ** gansabawas " or rural village councils, there 
are also judicial divisions and circuits, liable to change, 
the enumeration of which would convey little definite 
information.] 



286 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

CHIEF TOWNS. 

Colombo, according to census of 1881, with military 
and shipping added, 111,942 in area of 9^ square miles ; 
Oalle, 88,000; Kandy, 22,000 ; Jaffna, 40,000 ; Batticaloa, 
6,700; Eurunegala, 4,222; Anuradhapura, 1,800; Badulla, 
4,746. [The above are the capitals of the provinces. 
Negombo, Eatnapura, Ealutara, Panadure, and Moratuwa 
in the Western Province; Gampola, Matale, Nawalapitiya, 
Nuwara Eliya, and Hatton in the Central; Kalpitiya, 
Chilaw, and Puttalam in the North- Western; Point Pedro 
in the Northern ; Matara, Ambalangoda and Baddegama 
in the Southern Province ; HaldumuUa and Lunugalla in 
the Uva Province are, some of them, of more importance 
as regards population than the provincial capitals, while 
Trincomalee (population 10,180), though no longer the 
chief seat of civil government in the Eastern Province, 
continues to be of importance as the naval head-quarters 
of the East Indian fleet, although now that Colombo, with 
convenient harbour works, has been made the mail-steamer 
port, it is expected the naval station will ere long be trans- 
ferred to it, especially if a graving dock is constructed.] 

BEUGIONS. 

Estimated : Romanists, about 218,000. Protestants : 
Episcopalians, 22,000; Wesleyans, 20,000; Scotch and 
Dutch Presbyterians, and Congregationalists (latter con- 
verts of American mission), 18,000; Baptists, 6,000. Total 
Protestants, 60,000. Total Christians, 278,000. Buddhists 
and demon-worshippers, 1,700,000 ; Gentoos (worshippers 
of Siva, Vishnu, Pulleiyar, and other gods of the Hindu 
pantheon), 595,000; Muhammadans, 198,000. So that 
we get 278,000 Christians against 198,000 Muhammadens, 
and no less than 2,800,000 idolators and demon-worship- 
pers. [We rank as Christians 170,000 Sinhalese, 85,000 
Tamils, 17,800 European descendants, 4,800 Europeans, 
and a few Kafirs, Yeddas, and Bodiyas.] The proportion 
of Christians to whole population (nearly 10 per cent.) is 
far higher in Ceylon than in India, where those professing 
Christianity do not much exceed half-a-million out of the 
whole 250 millions or more. Ceylon is the classic land 
of Buddhism, and its fall here would influence a vast pro- 
portion of the human race (in Burmab, Siam, and China). 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 287 

The King of Siam frequently sends offerings to the 
*' Temple of the Saored Tooth/' in Eandy ; also the Kings 
of Burmah, up till Thebaw's dethronement, and so 
interested in Ceylon was a late King of Burmah, that he 
had copies of the Observer newspaper translated for his 
benefit into Burmese. There were 6,800 Buddhist, 1,200 
Hindu, and 521 Muhammedan priests returned in last 
census; besides 300 of temple servants, 140 tom-tom 
beaters, 1,532 devil dancers, 200 astrologers, 200 actors 
and nautch dancers, 120 snake charmers, 168 musicians. 
The total for church and chapel "service" was 110, 
besides 422 missionaries, clergymen, and ministers, in- 
cluding natives. 

LANGUAGES AND LITERATURE. 

Sinhalese^ founded on the Sanskrit, with a considerable 
infusion of Pali, and therefore belonging to the Indo- 
European family; but peculiar, except in its Sanskrit 
roots, to Ceylon. A Dravidian origin has been claimed 
for the language, but, as Spence Hardy shrewdly pointed 
out, all the names of places, mountains, and rivers are 
Sanskrit. Tamil, the leading branch of the Dravidian 
family, common to about 16 millions of people in Southern 
India and Ceylon. Spoken by the Moormen as well as the 
Tamils proper. A Portuguese patois still retains its hold 
amongst the European descendants, but Dutch has gone 
entirely out. Knowledsre of English rapidly advancing 
in towns and villages. Historical and Buddhistical litera- 
ture generally in Pali, with Sinhalese translations, commen- 
taries, and glosses. Translation of Mahdvansa by Turnour 
(now being continued by Madaliyar Wijesinghe) throws a 
flood of light on the history of Ceylon and India, while 
researches of Gogerly and writings of Spence Hardy and 
others have done equal service in revealing the true nature 
of the atheistical system of philosophy called Buddhism. 
Goldschmidt and Miiller have more recently, by examining 
and interpreting rock inscriptions, illustrated the history 
of the Sinhalese language, though not much new matter 
has been added by their researches to the history of 
the country and people. Works on medicine and science, 
generally in Sanskrit, and almost wholly derived from 
India. Three daily English newspapers [the daily and 
weekly (foreign and local) Observer having by far the 



298 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

largest circulation!, with weekly editions, published in 
Colombo, meet with fair and increasing support ; also a 
bi-weekly English journal in Colombo, and the weekly 
Government Gazette; a Ja&a weekly paper; and several 
periodicals in English, organs of churches, missions, &c. ; 
and a native press, Sinhalese and Tamil, with a few repre- 
sentatives in newspapers and periodicals. Among English 
periodicals the Tropical Agriculturist (monthly), begun in 
June, 1881, has an extending circulation throughout the 
tropics, and is regarded even among London publishers as 
a credit to Ceylon ; a weekly Ceylon Literary Register was 
begun as supplement to Observer in August, 1886. An 
interesting collection of palm-leaf MSS. exists in the 
librai7 of the Colombo museum. 

EDUCATION. 

Through the agency of a Government Department of 
Public Instruction and a grant-in-aid system, chiefly availed 
of by the various missionary societies, about 120,000 
children, or 1 in 24 of the population, are receiving in- 
struction in English and the vernaculars. Private schools 
not connected with missionaries or religious bodies, are 
few and ill-supported. A knowledge of vernacular reading 
and writing, generally very imperfect, is communicated in 
some of the Buddhist temple '^pansalas'* and private 
native schools. A large proportion of the population can 
sign their names who can do Uttle more. Education in 
missionary schools is, of course, strictly Christian. In 
Government schools the custom is, where no objection is 
offered, to read the Bible during the first hour. Attend- 
ance during that hour not compulsory, but pupils seldom 
or never absent themselves. Cost of Government Edu- 
cational Department (educating some 28,000 pupils), 
R800,000 per annum (besides grants-in-aid, which amount 
to R200,000 for 60,000 pupils), of which R28,000 is returned 
in the shape of fees, sales of books, &c. Total outlay on 
education, public and private, is about R700,000 (£70,000), 
against R7,000,000 (£700,000) supposed to be spent by the 
population on intoxicating drinks. Science is now prac- 
tically taught in the principal educational establishments 
in the chief towns, and technical training in agriculture 
and useful trades is gradually being added. Government 
grants, aggregating E8,000 per annum, are distributed 



Ceylon : Summary of Infoiination. 289 

among eighteen public libraries. The census gives about 
8,000 teachers, &c., male and female, in Ceylon. 



OCCUPATIONS. 

Vast majority of inhabitants engaged in agriculture : 
650,000 in census. Settled inhabitants (Sinhalese and 
Tamil) cultivate chiefly rice and other grain, with coconuts, 
palmyras, arecas, other palms, fruit trees and vegetables ; 
while 250,000 Tamil coolies (native born and immigrants), 
superintended by Europeans, grow on plantations, chiefly 
tea, with the old staple cofifee, to which have, of late 
years, been added cinchona, Liberian coffee, cacao, rubber, 
cardamoms, croton-oil seeds, pepper, and other new pro- 
ducts. Bice too, and tea, bark, and coffee &om plantations, 
are conveyed mainly by Sinhalese " bullock bandy men '* 
or carters, where railway communication does not serve. 
[There are about 14,000 licensed carts, mainly employed 
in plantation traffic, against half that number in 1850 ; 
this is exclusive of unlicensed carts employed not only by 
natives but by estate owners now in very considerable 
numbers. Bullocks in size aud strength, and carts in 
capaqity, greatly improved.] Fisheries (12,000 boats and 
canoes) and small class of shipping (vessels belonging to 
Ceylon, number 600; tonnage 25,000) employ a good 
many; 25,000 flshermen and boatmen in census — below 
the mark. The timber trade gives employment in 
felling, sawing, rafting, or carting, to very many. Local 
manufacturing industry, advancing: carpentry, weaving, 
coir-matting, oil-making, &o. There were 40,000 boutique- 
keepers and traders returned in census ; 14,000 carpenters ; 
6,000 masons; 18,000 dhobies; 16,000 coir- workers ; 
15,000 mat and basket makers ; 6,000 tailors and seam- 
stresses; 8,500 cotton and cloth spinners and weavers; 
600 lacemakers; 500 printers and bookbinders; 5,000 
bakers; 8,800 toddy drawers; 2,200 sawyers; 1,500 
plumbago diggers ; 6,600 jewellers ; 1,200 gem diggers ; 
4,500 blacksmiths ; 2,000 barbers ; 8,000 horsekeepers ; 
43,000 domestic servants. [There are about 1,000 small 
looms, and 2,000 wooden or stone oil presses, or 
" chekkus," scattered over Ceylon ; while steam and other 
machinery is extensively in use for preparing tea, coffee, 
and coir, expressing oil, sawing timber, &c. ; with perhaps 

20 



290 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

200 engines, aggregating folly 8,000 h. p„ and 25,000 em- 
ployes. About 100,000 coffee, oil, and plumbago casks, 
and now many thousands of tea boxes made, besides 
those imported and exported each year; and many 
thousands of women and chOdren, chiefly Sinhalese, find 
remunerative employment in *< coffee picking,'* and pre- 
paring cinnamon and cinchona bark, coir, and coconut 
oil, and plumbago, and to some extent bulking and packing 
tea, at Colombo stores.] The planting enterprize gives 
employment to large numbers of mechanics, native car- 
penters, and masons, who also find occupation on roads 
and bridges, water, harbour, irrigation, and railway exten- 
sion works. Very serviceable bricks and tiles made in the 
island ; and 5,000 Moormen ^Arab descendants off North- 
west coast) have special ap^tude as masons. Potteries 
for common earthenware utensils, common. Numerous 
distilleries, with simple apparatus for manufacture of 
arrack, and a few to obtain essential oils of cinnamon, 
citronella, and lemon-grass. Plumbago mining is in- 
creasing, giving employment in digging, carting, prepara- 
tion and shipment to several thousands ; and gem-searching 
(250 gem and 25 iron mines) employs a number (1,200) of 
not over-peaceable persons. Pearl fisheries uncertain — 
foreign divers (from coast ofif India) chiefly employed: 
good fisheries expected off North-west coast next few 
years. Chank fishery steady, but not very profitable. 



CULTIVATION. 

Grain: — Kice, 600,000 acres. Kurakkan, varieties of 
millet (known locally as ** dry grain*'), Indian com, &c., 
with koUu and other legumes, 150,000. Total Grain 
810,000. Pa/w7» .—Coconuts : native "topes," 450,000; 
European plantations, 50,000;= 500, 000 total coconuts. 
Palmyras, arecanuts, kitul, &c., 150,000. Total Pabns, 
650,000. Coffee, Tea, Cinchona, Cocoa (properly Cacao) : — 
European plantations (2,000 properties with 1,500 separate 
estates cultivated, or over 1,600, if divisions of large 
estates counted, cleared and in all stages of cultivation, 
excluding abandoned fields and making allowance for area 
covered by new products), coffee, 120,000 acres; native 
holdings, 10,000. Total coffee, 180,000. Cinchona, 86,000 
acres ; cocoa or cacao, 12,500 acres ; tea, 175,000 acres ; 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 291 

Liberian coffee (Enropean or native), 2,000 acres ; carda- 
moms (European and native), 7,000 acres; African palm 
nnts, rubber, &c., 500; grand total of plantation culture, 
tea, coffee, and new products, 860,000 acres. Tea is 
cultivated from nearly sea-level to over 6,000 feet. [Coffee 
(Aribica) was cultivated from elevation of 1,500 to 5,000 
feet : medium, best. Beserve of forest and chena in con- 
nection with plantations, 800,000 ; Government hill forest, 
suitable for coffee, tea, cinchona, &c., perhaps quarter pf a 
million acres, and at least four times that extent of low 
lands suited for tea and cacao, and for coconut, grain, 
and garden cultivation.] Tobacco, 25,000 acres ; cotton, 
400 acres ; sugar, aromatic grasses, aloes, &c., 5,500 ; 
garden vegetables : onions, chillies, brinjals, potatoes, and 
yams, cabbages, greens, pineapples, pumpins, cucumbers, 
&c., 100,000 acres. Plaiftain, jak, mango, breadfruit, 
orange, lime, guava, cadju, lovi-lovi, goraka, bilimbi, and 
other orchard cultivation, 120,000. Cinnamon, 80«000. 
Other spices — nutmeg, pepper, &c., 10,000 acres. Culti- 
vated grass land, 15,000. Introduced timber trees, 500. 
Total cultivation, about 1,900,000 acres; or at most 2 
millions— or about l-6th of area. Sugar cultivation a 
failure, probably from excessive moisture of climate, in 
western, southern, and central provinces ; a little still 
grown and manufactured at Baddegama, near Galle. Plan- 
tam (or banana) cultivation for fibre tried unsuccessfully 
near Matara. Natubal pastubaob — including patanas — 
1,000,000 in and around mountain zone ; in island 
generally, 2 or 3 million acres probably; that on hills 
coarse and indifferent, and (up to 4,000 feet) infested by 
land leeches ; in low country better, but great proportion 
in unhealthy parts. 

[Note. — ^Arabian coffee used to grow around native huts, 
and bore scattered berries at the sea-level ; and there were 
two or three plantations so low down as only 600 feet 
above the level of the sea, with a good many at an eleva- 
tion of 1,000. There are also plantations at an altitude 
of 5,000 feet and higher. These, if situated on detached 
hills, on sunny slopes, or on ranges, such as the Uva, 
facing a hot, low country, do well. But the coffee leaf fungus 
has put a stop to all interest in coffee extension, or even in 
its cultivation, save in such favourite districts as those of 
Uva, parts of Dikoya and Dimbula, and detached planta- 



292 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

tions in other districts. The ooconnt flonrishes chiefly at 
the sea-level and on the coast ; also np river valleys with 
a few gardens in central province. Bice runs np to where 
Arabian coffee used to begin, at 2,000 feet altitude. We 
have now tea cultivation from sea-level to over 6,000 feet, 
so covering all elevations, with cinchonas flourishing from 
1,700 to over 7,000 feet elevation, and cacao or chocolate 
plant in sheltered rich valleys and districts up to about 
2,000 feet] 



VALUE OF PLANTATION PB0PEBT7, AND EFFECTS OF EUROPEAN 

CAPITAL AND ENTEBPBIZE. 

The value of cultivated coffee (£2,000,000), tea 
(£4,260,000), cinchona (£1,400,000), cacao (£800,000), 
cardamoms, other products (£600,000), &c., grass land on 
plantations all round, may be taken at about 10 millions 
sterling. Add £600,000 for 100,000 acres reserve forest 
at £6 an acre, and 200,000 acres more of reserve belong- 
ing to plantations in private hands, in grass (natural), 
chena, or abandoned land, part of which may be utilized 
for new products by degrees, worth £1 per acre ; and we 
get about 11 millions for old and new products plantation- 
land, chiefly in the hands of Europeans. Including build- 
ings, muchinery, carts, cattle, &c., the value is certainly 
not under the 12 millions. The value of coconut palm 
cultivation in the island we put at about the same sum, or 
12^ millions sterling. Of other palms and fruit trees, at 
nearly 6 millions. Of cinnamon, £760,000. Other spices, 
£500,000. Cotton, tobacco, vegetables, and other garden 
produce, at 1^ million. Of rice and other grain nearly 6 
millions. Making a total value of cultivated land of about 
86 million pounds sterUng. 

The value of forest- land, chena, and pasturage, in the 
hands of low-country natives, will make a considerable 
addition. The amount of British capital diffused 'W the 
planting enterprize since 1887 has been enormous, and the 
Sinhalese carpenters and other artizans, cart contractors, 
and cattle owners, with the Tamil rice dealers antl coolie 
labourers, have profited largely by it — a profit in which 
tlie European capitalists and planters have only in a 
scanty measure participated. It is calculated that, reckon- 
ing the pioneers, not more than 10 per cent, of the Euro- 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 293 

pean planters during the fifty years can be isaid to have 
bettered themselves in Ceylon. 48,000 deeds were regis- 
tered and 27 million rupees secured on mortgages in 
1878, at the height of coffee planting prosperity. Splen- 
did roads have been opened and fine bridges erected over 
impassable rivers, and populous and thriving towns and 
villages have sprung up in the planting districts, where 40 
to 50 years ago all was interminable jungle. The natives 
in the towns are rapidly adopting European habits, and 
many send their children to England for education or to 
take rank as barristers, physicians, and clergymen. The 
improvement has spread to the urban masses too : witness 
the declaration of the Bev. E. S. Hardy, a missionary of 
40 years' experience : — ** The contrast between one of 
their homes now and in the times I can remember is 
nearly as great as between a grimed native chatty (earthern 
pot) and a bright English tea kettle.'' Crime has, how- 
ever, kept pace with the spread of wealth, and what is 
usually termed *< civilization." Although the Sinhalese, 
on the authority of one of their own number (the late Mr. 
James Al wis), possess "not even a tincture of soldiership," 
they are prone to crimes of revenge and violence. In this 
respect the ''low country Sinhalese," although most of them 
profess a religion which absolutely forbids the taking of life, 
hold a '' bad pre-eminence ; " the Tamils ranking second, 
and the Kandyan Sinhalese third. 

RETURNS OF CROP, 

from rice and grain lands, generally range from 5 to 80 
bushels per acre, the average for rice being about 20 
bushels in the husks, or 10 bushels dean. [The Govern- 
ment returns give averages of under 10 bushels for rice, 
and a fraction over 7 bushels for '' dry grain ; " in both 
cases unhusked grain. But these low averages arise from 
the defective mode in which the accounts are made up. 
An acre is about ** 2^ bushels sowing extent *' — the average 
return 20 bushels; in favourable positions twice that 
quantity.] Coconuts, 1,600 to 3,200 nuts per acre, per 
annum, at 80 trees to acre. Tea in Ceylon has yielded on 
Mariawatte and one or two other favoured plantations 
over 1,0001b. made tea per acre for several years; on 
some more favoured plots over 8001b ; the average so far 



294 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

is about 4001b. ; on old poor land not more than 8001b. 
can be expected. Cinchona trees have given as much as 
121b. marketable bark at six years old in Ceylon, an acre 
of red bark trees (1578) gave 12,0001b. after five years. 
Cofifee on plantations ranges from 1 cwt. to 8 cwt. ; the 
average (previous to the appearance of a coffee leaf 
fungus, HemUeia vastatrix^ in 1869) a little over 6 cwt. ; 
for native gardens, 5 : in both cases clean coffee. Of 
recent years, the average has been reduced to less than 2 
or 8 cwt. Cinnamon gives on an average about 801b. per 
acre. Lands fully planted and cultivated yield up to 125 
and 1501b. ; neglected and swampy lands not more than 40. 
A good deal of *< jungle spice,*' cut fxom, the forests, enters 
into the exports. Coffee [coffea aribica) until the last few 
years was regarded ad almost the only really paying culti- 
vation in which Europeans could engage, but the persistent 
attacks of leaf fungus forced attention to other articles, 
and the prospects of " new products," chiefly of tea (now 
regarded as tibe planter's staple), cinchona, and cacao now 
seem good. There are a few remunerative coconut estates 
belonging to Europeans, but Europeans cannot success- 
fully compete with natives in this pursuit. The tree is 
said to love the sound of the human voice, the obvious 
meaning of which is that it flourishes best where best 
supplied with fertilizing matter and otherwise tended; 
this cultivation has vastly extended throagh the wealth 
acquired by natives from introduced European capital 
during the last twenty to thirty years. The once famous 
cinnamon of Ceylon, though stiU the finest grown, seldom 
yields more than a minimum of profit to the cultivator. 
Grain cultivation cannot, even at the occasional high 
prices which prevail, offer any inducement to European 
enterprize, and the natives persevere in the pursuit mainly 
for the reasons thus stated by the experienced and intelli- 
gent servant of Government who so long administered 
the Western Province, Sir C. P. Layard: — **You are 
right in your conclusion that the cultivation of paddy 
is the least profitable pursuit to which a native can apply 
himself. It is persevered in from habit, and because the 
value of time and labour never enters into his calculation. 
Besides this, agriculture is, in the opinion of a Sinhalese, 
the most honourable of callings. I do not think that the 
average yield of our fields is as low as 5^ bushels to the 



Ceylon : Summary of information. 295 

acre — twenty is nearer the mark ; but all arable lands are 
not cultivated at once, or even in the same year, and the 
estimates of a season's sowing often include crops aban- 
doned immediately after the seed has been sown, either on 
account of drought or flood. The uncertain climate of 
the maritime districts and a poor soil are both causes of 
the comparative smallness of our returns. In India, i.e., 
both in Bengal and the grain-producing districts of the 
Madras Presidency, they have extensive tracts of alluvial 
lands on the banks of their rivers, the like of which, even 
on a small scale, cannot be found hera" This has lately 
been disputed by Mr. Elliot, CCS., but he has only 
proved that rice growingislargelyprofitable in such fnvoured 
districts as Matara, Batticaloa, and some parts of the 
other provinces with good soil and special irrigational 
advantages; there are large areas where fruit, leaf, and 
bark-growing is and will be much more profitable than 
rice to the natives. Of course all the grain grown in the 
island is consumed within its limits, besides very large 
imports for the urban and coolie population. Of the pro- 
duce of the coconut tree, by far the larger proportion is 
also consumed in the island. Taking the annual value of 
the oil, nuts, arrack, toddy, coir, &c., at 2 J millions 
sterling, nearly one-third is exported; the people con- 
suming the remaining two-thirds, chiefly in the shape of 
nuts for food, with a good deal of arrack, toddy, oil, coir, 
&o. Of the produce of other palms the exports amount 
to about £120,000. Practically, the whole of the cinna- 
mon grown is exported. Of the tea and coffee produced, 
the local consumption may be taken at 2^ per cent., or 
about 800,0001b. and 6,000 cwt., representing a value 
of about half a million of rupees against 20 to 80 millions 
of rupees* worth exported. Of the produce of the areca 
and palmyra palms (arecanuts, used for the almost uni- 
versal Indian and Ceylon masticatory, with palmyi-a 
timber and coarse sugar), while much is consumed in the 
island, a good proportion is exported. But for the one 
important mineral plumbago (of which 212,000 cwt. were 
sent away in 1884, valued at over a miUion of rupees) the 
whole export trade of Ceylon might still be described as 
the produce mainly of the tea and coffee and cinchona 
shrubs, with the products of three palms, and in a sub- 
sidiary degree of the cinnamon, and now of cacao and a 



296 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

little Liberian coffee. The statement that Ceylon at one 
time grew grain enough to feed a population of 5 (mnch 
more 12 ) millions is very doubtfal. Some of the great tanks 
appear never to have been completed, having been com- 
menced by particular monarchs chiefly for their own 
glorification. Much more is to be hoped for from the 
irrigation works recently constructed or restored by the 
Ceylon Government. At present Ceylon grows tea and 
COCONUTS mainly (with coffee, cinchonas, cacao, cardamoms, 
and other secondary products, besides i(s grain and fruit 
culture), and gets much grain, cattle, cloth, specie, and 
nearly all she wants in exchange. 

CBOWN LAND GRANTED AND SOLD, 

since 1838, about 1,300,000 acres, yielding a revenue of 
about £2,100,000. Average price, 1838 to 1844. 10s. 84 ; 
1844 to 1888, 87s. 9d. Upset price, now £1; highest 
price realized nearly 250 rupees (£25) for hill forest land, — 
generally ranges £1 to £5 for forest land, and £400 per 
acre occasionally for building lots near Colombo. Half of 
lands sold, hill forest suited for coffee, cinchona, tea, &c. ; 
half for grain, coconuts, Liberian coffee, cacao, tea, plan- 
tains, &c. Full title — no land-tax (only 6 per cent, on 
lands and houses within limits of towns for police purposes ; 
in Colombo 8 per cent, for lighting and 2 per cent, just 
being levied for water) ; tithes (rent), levied on grain only, 
10 per cent, of produce (a few cases of 20 to 25) against 
50 per cent, tax often in India. There are insuperable 
objections, on the part of the natives mainly, to a land- 
tax, which would fall on coconut, fruit, and root culture, 
now free, but a liberal commutation system is being applied 
to the grain tithes, which were exacted by the native rulers 
in addition to other taxes, all of which, except the rice- 
tax, the British Government abandoned. Those who cry 
out against food and salt taxes in oriental countries may 
as well be reminded that, except through grain, salt, and 
cotton cloth, the vast majority of the natives of Ceylon 
would almost entirely escape contributing to the expendi- 
ture necessary for the support of civil government, 
military and police protection, and means of communica- 
tion. 

STOCK. 

Eetums very defective. Perhaps there are 6,000 



Ceylon : Summary of Inform/ition. 297 

horses, 1,100,000 cattle (including buffaloes), 70,000 sheep, 
100,000 goats, and 50,000 swine in Ceylon, with 1,000 
ast»es and 200 mules. Ceylon imports (chiefly from India, 
with some from AustraHa) nearly all its horses, most of 
its draught cattle, and much cattle, sheep, goats, and 
poultry for food, to a total value of over a million rupees 
per annum. Two-flfths of the grain consumed (about 18 
millions of bushels in all) is also imported. Prices, always 
high in Ceylon, have risen steadily, and the tendency is 
upwards, though a little checked by the planting depres- 
sion in 1880-6. So with the wages of servants and 
labourers. Butcher-meat, especially up country, is likely 
to become scarcer and dearer in consequence of cattle 
establishments having been abolished on a large propor- 
tion of estates as not profitable. Artificial manures are 
found to cost less, generally, than the dung of cattle fed 
on cultivated grasses and expensive grain and oil-cakes. 



COMBfEBCE. 

Imports ^ 60 millions of rupees.. Eopportn, 40 millions : 
total value of commerce, 90 millions, nominally 9 million 
pounds sterling ; or, excluding specie, 80 millions. [The 
coasting trade is also considerable.] Staple imports : — 
Eice, &c., 5^ million bushels, 1^ million sterling ; cotton 
goods, about £600,000; live stock, £100,000; salt fish, 
100,000; other food requisites, £200,000; wearing ap- 
parel, &c., £110,000 ; machinery, £80,000; liquors, 
£120,000 ; manures, £50,000 ; coal, 200,000 tons. Staple 
exports:— Coffee, 200,000 to 260,000 cwt. ; 1 to 1^ 
million sterling; tea, 10 million lb., £600,000 (likely to 
ribe rapidly) ; cacao, 20,000 cwt., £80,000 ; cardamoms, 
260,000 lb., £80,000; coconut oil, 4^ million gaUons, 
£460,000; cinnamon, 2 J million lb., £120,000; coir. 
100,000 cwts., £60,000; plumbago, 260,000 cwt., £260,000; 
ebony, 10,000 cwt, £7,000; other kinds of timber, £20,000; 
cinchona bark, 15 million lb., £500,000. Total exports 
from tea, coffee, cinchona, and cacao plantations, £8,000,000; 
from coconut palm, £800,000 ; other palms, £100,000 ; 
cinnamon and all spices, £200,000 ; tobacco, £100,000 ; 
timber, £25,000 ; plumbago, £100,000. In 1887 Ceylon 
exported only 84,000 cwt. of coffee, valued ^t £106,000 ; 
total value of trade, including the then valuable article of 



298 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

cinnamon, only £900,000 against 9 millions now. In 
1883 the value of Ceylon exports was only £180,000 ; 
imports, £820,000 ; total £450,000. So that the increase 
of trade in little more than fifty years has heen nearly 20- 
fold. Tonnage outwards and inwards nearly 4 millions 
now, against less than 100,000 tons in 1825. 

REVENUE. 

Average, K18,000,000 per annum (R8,000,000 from 
taxes and E5, 000,000 land sales, railway, and other 
receipts). This includes Bl. 000,000 direct taxation on 
all males (save Governor, military, and Buddhist priest) 
between 18 and 55, for thoroughfares; persons paying 
direct taxes number 515,000. Add Bl, 500,000 raised by 
road committees, municipalities, local boards, and village 
councils, and B100,000 under coolie medical ordinance 
from planters, making the total of about B15,000,000. 
Customs and railways yield nearly one-half of the regular 
revenue ; excise on toddy (fermented juice of coconut 
tree) and arrack (spirit distilled from it) one~eighth. 
Grain tithes, land sales, salt monopoly, tolls, and stamps 
are the other great sources of revenue. Pearl fishery 
occasionally productive, but very uncertain ; yielded alto- 
gether over 1 million sterling to British ; greatest amount, 
£140,000 in 1798. Taxation not heavy— less than B8 
(6s.) per head; but mass of people poor, and, under 
ancient village regulations, bestow labour on upkeep of 
irrigation tanks and channels. The revenue has doubled 
in 25 years, trebled in 30 years, and nearly quadrupled in 
40 years, although cinnamon monopoly, fish-tax, &c., 
abandoned, and customs duties equalized and moderated. 
The maximum of revenue owing to heavy land sales and 
planting prosperity was attained in 1877, at £1,700,000; 
it fell in 1882 with planting depression to £1,206,000 ; but 
has since risen steadily, and is expected ere long to 
average £1,400,000. 

EXPENDITUBE. 

Civil, judicial, public instruction, medical, police, prisons 
establishments, .and services, B6, 600,000 ; pensions, 
B650,000; pailitary contribution, B600,000; roads and 
buildings, B2,000,000. Bailway services, with interest on 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 299 

loans (against large income), B2, 100,000. Interest on 
breakwater and waterworks loans, E600,000. Irrigation 
works, B400,000, besides special advances. Minor items, 
such as conveyance of mails, immigration, &c. What 
the colony mainly requires is a liberal and judicious 
expenditure on 



MEANS OF COMMUNICATION. 

A line of railway 74^ miles long between Colombo 
(chief shipping port) and Kandy (capital of the central or 
planting province) was opened in August, 1867 ; an exten- 
sion to Nawalapitiya from Peradeniya, 17 miles, in 
December, 1874 : an extension from Kandy to Matale, 17^ 
miles, opened on 4th October, 1880. Besides the above, 
a seaside line has been constructed from Colombo to 
Ealutara, 27^ miles, opened in September, 1879 ; and a 
few miles of line to serve the breakwater. And on drd 
August, 1880, the first sod was turned of an extension 
from Nawalapitiya for 41^ miles to Nanuoya, within 4 
miles of the Sanatarium, Nuwara Eliya, and opened on 
20th May, 1886. [From Nanuoya the line is intended to 
be carried 25^ miles farther to Haputale, and thence to 
Badulla.] Altogether, about 183 miles of railway, all on 
the 6J feet gauge, have now been opened. The railway at 
Eadugannawa reaches 1,700 feet sea-level; at Kandy, 
1,600 feet; Peradeniya, 1,512; Matale, 1,200 feet; 
Nawalapitiya, 1,918; Hatton, 4,168; Nanuoya, 6,292 
feet ; the Moragalla tunnel at Kadugannawa is 866 yards 
long ; the Poolbank tunnel, 614 yards ; Talawakelle tunnel 
is 266 yards ; sharpest curve 6 chains ; ruling gradient, 
Kadugannawa incline, 1 to 46 (12 miles long), on Nanuoya 
extension, heaviest gradient 1 to 44. Other lines are 
contemplated to connect the main line with Kurunegala 
and Negombo and even Chilaw, and to extend from 
Kalutara to Galle; from Kalutara to Bakawana; and 
from Kurunegala or Matale with Jaffna ; from Colombo to 
Kotte ; and a city line in Colombo for the northern suburb of 
Mattakuliya, unless city tramways are adopted. A line 
taking in Kotte and other suburbs of Colombo would, it 
is believed, pay well. At present, two coaches run daily 
from Kalutara to Galle, and vice versa ; a coach runs tri- 
weekly (shortly to become daily) between Colombo and 



800 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Batnapura, also from Colombo to Yatiyantota, and from 
Batnapara to PelmaduUa; and mail-carts or coaches 
exist between Colombo and Negombo ; Oalle and Matara ; 
also a coach or mail-cart from Nanuoya to Nnwara Eliya ; 
from Matale to Dambula, and thence a bullock coach to 
Jaffiia. In three days, a visitor to Colombo might easily 
rnn up via Kandy to Nuwara Eliya, passing through the 
finest of mountain scenery, and return ; two days would 
suffice to pay a visit from Colombo to Nuwara Eliya and 
the middle planting region ; while a run to Kandy and 
back, with a sight of the beautiful and grand scenery in 
view on and from the BAUiWAY incline, can be accomplished 
in one day. Boads: — Metalled, 1,850 miles; gravelled, 
790; ungravelled, 740= total miles of road, 2,900, or one 
mile of road for every nine square miles of extent in the 
island; upkeep of roads, canals, public buildings, and 
irrigation works, total expenditure of Public Works De- 
partment, £200,000; road pioneer corps number 500, with 
several trained working elephants. Canals navigable for 
boats, 180 miles, besides portions of rivers and back- 
waters. [In addition to expenditure from general revenue, 
roads and canals are made and kept up by thoroughfares' 
tax, equivalent of six days* labour per annum from each 
adult male. Groups of estates not intersected by thorough- 
fares can get cart-roads on paying half the cost, Oovem- 
ment giving other moiety. In 1807 there were no carriage 
roads beyond the limits of the principal town in the 
maritime proviuces; and none in the Kandyan country 
until 1820, the era in which Sir Edward Barnes* great 
road-making operations commenced, opening up the paci- 
fied Kandyan country to enterprize, and so rendering 
railways necessary and possible.] Besides the P. & O. 
Company's and Messageries steamers connecting Colombo, 
the mail-port, with India, China, Australia, &g., there are 
the Austro-Hungarian Lloyds and the Norddeutscher 
Lloyds steamers ; also the British India Steam Navigation 
Company maintain a regular communication (weekly) be- 
tween Colombo, Bombay, Calcutta, and intermediate 
ports. This company has also a fortnightly line between 
London, Colombo, Madras, and Calcutta, via the Suez 
Canal; and other similar lines, via the Suez Canal, are 
worked by the Star, the Clan, Holt's, the Glen, Anchor, 
the Ducal, the City, Bird, and other steam companies. 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 801 

PUBLIC DEBT OF GEYLON, 

The cost of the Colombo and Kandy Eailway (£1,740,000) 
was provided for by a special tax on coffee, and partly ont 
of general revenue, and afterwards out of the receipts and 
pcofits of the line, amounting to from 8 to 10 per cent, on 
capital. The Kandy, Nawalapitiya and Seaside railways 
are now the free property of the colony. It may be said 
that, besides the network of splendid roads, <* coffee*' has 
given the colony 118 miles of first-class railway, worth 2^ 
millions sterling, and yielding about £120,000 per annum 
clear income. For the Matale railway a debt of £275,000 
has been increased, and another of one million sterhng in 
debentures for the first 41^ miles of the Dimbula-Uva rail- 
way extension, and another half milUon will be required 
to complete to Haputale. For the Colombo Harbour 
Works about £600,000 in all have been expended, of which 
£226,000 are to be given by the Public Loan Commis- 
sioners at 8^ per cent, for 85 years, and the balance, 
£850,000, at 4 or 5 per cent, for interest and sinking fund. 
£850,000 is also now estimated for the Colombo Water- 
works. So that, when the works in hand are complete, 
the debt of the colony for general and municipal purposes 
will be about 2^ million pounds sterling, with an annual 
charge for interest and sinking fund of about £185,000. 
The annual railway, harbour, and water supply receipts 
will then, however, not be less than £860,000 per annum, 
and, deducting working expenses, .should yield sufficient 
profit to cover more than the annual claims, only the 
Dimbul^ Railway extensions will not pay properly until 
the new Uva traffic is brought on the existing hnes, 

FORM OF ADMINISTRATION I CENTRAL AND MUNICIPAL. 

Governor, aided by Executive and Legislative Councils ; 
the power of making laws being vested in the latter con- 
currently (as is the case with Crown Colonies generally) 
with the legislative power of the Crown, which exercises 
that power by Orders in Council. Executive Council con- 
sists of five of the principal officers of Government, pre- 
sided over by the Governor, who being personally respon- 
sible to the Home Government, can consult, but is not 
bound to follow the advice of, the Executive Councillors. 
All appointments to, or promotions in, the Civil Service 



802 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

with salaries over E2,000 per annum, vest in the Secretary 
of State, but practically all appointments, except to the 
higher offices, are left to the Governor. For writerahips 
in the Civil Service four gentlemen are named for each 
vacancy by the Secretary of State or the Governor, and 
the candidate who receives the greatest number of marks 
is appointed. With salaries much more moderate in 
Ceylon than in India, we have a covenanted Civil Service 
numbering about 80 members for about three millions of 
inhabitants, instead of less than a dozen civilians with 
native assistants for a similar population in India. The 
Legislative Council is composed of the members of the 
Executive, four other principal officers of the Government, 
and six unofficial members selected by the Governor with 
reference to as fair a representation as possible of the 
various classes and interests — (at present representatives 
include Sinhalese, Tamil, and Burgher members ; one 
European for planters, one for merchants, and one for 
general European interests) — sixteen in all, six, however, 
forming a quorum : and an Order of the Queen in Council 
declared the proceedings of the Legislature valid, though 
all unofficial seats be vacant The Governor can com- 
mand the votes of all official members except on points 
where religious principles are affected. Governor presides, 
with casting vote and ultimate power of veto. All ordi- 
nances are sent for the final approval of her Majesty, but 
only in rare cases is the operation of a law suspended 
pending that approvals. Unofficial members can, after 
permission obtained, introduce drafts of ordinances where 
votes of money are not concerned. Eight Provinces, ad- 
ministered by Government Agents and their Assistants 
(with native revenue and police headmen, such as 'Bate- 
mahatmayas, Mudaliyars, Muhandirams, Eoralas, Yidanas, 
&c.), all under strict supervision of Government ; central- 
ization being the ruling principle, perhaps to an injurious 
extent. By means of Native Village Councils, Munici- 
palities in the three chief towns (Colombo, Galle, and 
Kandy), and Local Boards in nine towns of secondary im- 
portance (ranging from 1,800 to 10,000 in population), 
the principles of self-government are being of recent years 
to a considerable extent diffused. As yet, however, the 
bulk of the natives appreciate the incidence of municipal 
taxation more than the benefits conferred by sanitary and 



Ceylon : Sumnidiy of Information. 808 

other improvements. The Golomho Municipality has 
introduced gas, and (by order of Government) are spend- 
ing over K8,500,000 on a water supply, the works for 
which are almost completed ; Eandy and Galle have 
already made provision for water supply. 



LAWS. 

The Boman-Dutch law is the common law of the land, 
and applicable in all cases not otherwise specially provided 
for by local enactments.* It obtains in cases of marriage, 
inheritance, succession, or contracts. The law as to 
matrimonial rights has been modified by Ordinance 15 of 
1876, by aboHshing community of goods as a consequence 
of marriage, and by prescribing the order of succession in 
cases of intestacy. The law of England, however, is of 
force (by virtue of the Ordinance No. 6 of 1852) in all 
maritime matters, and in respect of bills of exchange, 
promissory notes, and cheques. The law of England was 
further introduced by Ordinance 22 of 1866, in respect of 
Partnerships, Joint Stock Companies, Corporations, Banks 
and Banking, Principals and Agents, Carriers by Land, 
and Life and Fire Insurances. Boman-Dutch law, how- 
ever, absurdly enough, prevails as to Contracts and Torts 
(damages). Property can be willed away, but intestate 
estates are divided according to the principles of Boman- 
Dutch law, controlled by Ordinance 15 of 1876. Local 
ordinances are subject to approval of sovereign, but may 
be brought into force at once. They cease to be operative, 
however, if not confirmed within three years. The 
Eandyans are subject to their own laws, and when these 
are silent the Boman-Dutch law governs them. In 1859 
their marriage laws were greatly altered, and polyandry 
and polygamy, formerly sanctioned, were then expressly 
prohibited ; but this salutary prohibition had afterwards 
to be in some degree relaxed, the legislation being in ad- 
vance of the intelligence and condition of the people. 
Europeans and European descendants are now exempted 
from the operation of the Eandyan law as respects inheri- 
tance, and made subject to the Boman-Dutch law, by 
which a widow gets a just moiety of her husband's estate 
(excepting when a diiferent provision is made by ante- 

* A CWil Code is in course of preparation. 



804 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

nuptial contract or by joint will, and the children the 
other moiety in equal shares. The Muhammadans have 
a code of their own in matters of marriage and inheri- 
tance. The Tamils of the north and east have their code 
also — the TesavallamL The criminal law of the island, 
known as the Boman-Dutch law, was repealed by a Penid 
Code, which came into operation on Ist January, 1885, 
whereby the punitive jurisdiction of District Courts as 
regards imprisonment was raised to two years, and of 
Police Courts to six months. This has relieved the 
Supreme Court of a number of cases that used to be sent 
there for trial. The number of jurymen has been reduced 
to nine, and is to be further reduced to seven. The pro- 
cedure in the courts is regulated by the Criminal Procedure 
Code, which came into operation at the same time as the 
Penal Code. These codes are largely transcripts and 
adaptations of the Indian Penal and Procedure Codes. 
The English law of evidence prevails in all the courts ; 
and a special ordinance provides that substantial justice 
shall not fail through want of adherence to legal techni- 
calities. Further codification of laws, so as to secure 
settlement of principles and avoidance of conflict and 
occasional uncertainty, desiderated (and is likely ere long 
to be carried), as weU as a law of libel, which would 
recognize the functions and privileges of a free press 
better than do the antiquated provisions of Eoman-Dutch 
laws. It is now proposed to substitute the English law of 
contracts and torts, and a civil code is in course of pre- 
paration, a criminal code having already been introduced. 

ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE *. CRIME. 

The ordinary courts are Supreme Court (Chief Justice 
and two Puisne Judges), District Courts, Courts of 
Bequests, and Police Courts. The last have jurisdiction 
in all minor cases not punishable with more than £5 fine, 
six months' imprisonment, and twenty lashes. Courts of 
Bequests have jurisdiction in all civil suits where the 
matter in dispute — land or money — does not exceed jglO 
in value. District Courts have unlimited civil jurisdic- 
tion in civil, matrimonial, testamentary, and insolvent 
cases (about 10,000 suits decided annually), and criminal 
jurisdiction in all cases not punishable with more than 



Ceylon : Summary of Information, 805 

£20 fine, two years* imprisonment, and twenty-five lashes. 
The Supreme Court has only an appellate jurisdiction in 
civil cases and over the criminal decisions of the District 
and Police Courts, and an unlimited jurisdiction in 
criminal cases. The latter is exercised by a judge and 
nine jurymen, the verdict of the majority prevailing, 
except in murder cases, when two-thirds are jiecessary. 
The appointment, temporarily, of a Commissioner of 
Assize, to assist the Supreme Court judges in criminal 
sessions work, has been sanctioned. The Supreme Court 
and the District Courts of Colombo and Eandy are gene- 
rally filled by professional men. Occasionally these and 
all the other judicial offices are open to members of the 
civil service, or others appointed by the Governor or 
Secretary of State. There is no grand jury, its powers 
being exercised by the Attorney-General — assisted by the 
Solicitor-General Tboth being the recognized law officers of 
the Crown — who nas a seat in the Executive Council, and 
is a member of the Government. All local ordinances 
are prepared by him — he advises the Government in all 
legal matters, and has the charge of Crown suits through- 
out the island, being assisted in his work by the Solicitor- 
General and local deputies (** Crown Counsel *') for each 
circuit. An appeal lies of right to the Privy Council 
from all decisions of the Supreme Court in cases above 
£500 : it may be allowed by grace in other cases. There 
are only two classes of lawyers in Ceylon — advocates and 
proctors admitted on examination. English and Irish 
barristers and Scotch advocates are entitled to plead as 
advocates. Notaries, who draw deeds but do not practise 
in the courts, are numerous (about 600), being appointed 
by the Governor with reference to the wants of districts. 
Many proctors hold warrants and act as notaries. The 
proportion of lawyers (about 840 advocates and proctors) 
to population is high, the people of Ceylon being exces- 
sively litigious, fractions of fruit-trees being sometimes the 
subjects of action. In crime, about 60,000 offences re- 
ported, and 90,000 persons apprehended annually; two- 
thirds usually acquitted : great proportion false cases. 
Summcury convictions, 18,000 ; committals to gaol about 
20,000, but one-third tax defaulters. About 2,500 con- 
victs. About 100 murders and manslaughters reported 
annually. Total cost of crime to colony estimated at 

21 



806 Ceylon in the Juhilee Xear. 

E800,000 per annum. A Penal Code wa8 (1888) passed 
embodying all the criminal law. 

POLICE. 

Whether regularly organized and paid, as in towns, or 
rural system of unpaid headman called Yidanas, by no 
means perfect, the material to work on being far from 
good. Beforms in the regular police have, however, been 
carried out, the total number under an Inspector- General, 
with five Provincial Superintendents, being now over 
1,500, costing B600,000 per annum for the department 
altogether. Some fifty of the constables are Europeans, 
besides all the superintending officers. The regular 
pohce is taught rifie drill, and in furnishing guards for 
prisons, escorts for treasure, &o., largely performs duties 
which previously fell to the military, mainly to the late 
Ceylon Bifies Corps. 

CUBBENCY AND FINANCE. 

Bupees and cents of a rupee ; the copper or bronze 
subsidiary coinage, including a five cent piece, cents, half 
cents, and quarter cents. The latter have now superseded 
the old Dutch coins — fanams, pice, challies, &c. — as well 
as EngUsh pence and their parts. The silver half rupee 
is taken at 50 cents, the quarter at 25 cents, and the 
eighth (two anna piece of India) at 12^ cents. The rupee 
for some time has averaged Is. 6d. sterling in value ; but 
during 1886 fell temporarily to Is. 4d. Gold coins are 
sold by the banks at about current rates of exchange. 
The note issue in Ceylon is now, since 1st January, 1886, 
a Government issue, and paper money to an average value 
of 4^ milhons of rupees is in circulation. There are in 
the island agencies of the New Oriental Bank Corporation; 
Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London, and China ; 
the Bank of Madras ; of the Chartered Bank of India, 
Australia, and China ; of the National Bank of India ; of 
the Comptoir d'Escompte de Paris, and through mercantile 
houses of others. The clearing-house returns for Colombo 
show about B5 5,000,000 of cheques per annum. Besides 
these private banking institutions, and some agencies of 
loan companies, there are the Government Savings Bank 
(with deposits equal to about Bl,750,000, lodged by over 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 807 

18,000 depositors) and the Loan Board, each of which 
lends money on good house security at comparatively 
moderate interest. 

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 

British standard, to which local candies, leaguers, &c., 
are reduced. Coffee, our old staple produce, is usually 
sold locally by the bushel, from 4|^ to 5 bushels ''parch- 
ment *' going to 1 cwt. clean coffee. Tea and bark by lb. ; 
coconut oil by gallon or cwt. , 12^ gallons going to cwt. 
For freight purposes, 10 chests tea usual size make 50 
cubic feet, which go to ton ; 16 cwt. coffee in casks, 18 in 
bags, go to a ton ; 17 cwt. coconut oil, 12 cwt. coir and 
cardamoms, 14 cwt. hides, 16 cwt. horns and pepper, 17 
poonac or oil cakes, 800 lbs. cinnamon or cinchona ; 
measurement goods, 50 cubic feet to the ton. A maund of 
tea seed or leaf about 84 lbs. ; bushel of rice, 68 lbs. ; 
candy of copperah, 500 lb. 

CUSTOMS DUTIES, 

port dues, pilotage, &c., are moderate, the leading prin- 
ciple in the customs tariff being 5 to 6^ per cent, on the 
value of imports, and the only export duties being BlOO 
for every elephant, and E5 per ton on plumbago in lieu of 
Government royalty ; with moderate charges on tonnage, 
which now has the benefit of safe and commodious harbour 
accommodation at Colombo, by means of the fine break- 
water. Export levies of a fractional amount are also 
imposed on certain plantation products, for coolie medical 
aid purposes, 10 cents per cwt. on tea, coffee, and cocoa; 
20 cents on cinchona bark ; with 6 cents per chest of tea 
for harbour dues. 

COLOMBO HABBOUB WOBES. 

Begun in 1875 ; foundation laid by H.B.H. the Prince 
of Wales, 8th Dec. ; Sir John Coode, Kt., Consulting 
Engineer ; John Kyle, M.LC.E., Eesident Executive Engi- 
neer: over £700,000 expended in all, and 4,211 feet of 
breakwater arm completed from starting point at shore 
end to pier-head with lighthouse, besides extensive recla- 
mation work, forming safe, commodious harbour (with 
jetties), covering 250 acres, with from 26 to 40 feet of 



808 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

water. An expenditure of £400,000 more would provide 
a northemarm, jetties, and harbour reclamation, at Mutwal. 
The harbour revenue already exceeds B450,000 per annum, 
and it could be made B600,000 for the complete works. 
A graving dock for imperial-naval as well as commercial 
purposes is the first great necessity. 

TBAMWAYS IN COLOMBO 

are an anticipated city improvement, several lines being 
projected and tendered for to the municipality by a respon- 
sible agency. 

OOLOlfBO WATERWORKS 

were commenced in 1881-2, to supply the city (covering 
9^ square miles) with two million gallons of water daily, 
from a reservoir in the Labugama hills, thirty miles away. 
The contract for the hill and city (Maligahakanda) reser- 
voirs, and for laying pipes, was given in from 1882 for 
El,415,500), the work to be done in three years by Messrs. 
Mitchell and Izard ; the consulting engineer being Mr. 
Bateman, of Westminster ; Mr. A. W. Burnett being chief 
resident engineer. The I^abugama reservoir (of 176 
acres, 59 ^et maximum depth of water, to contain 
1,873,000,000 gallons, 860 feet top water above sea level), 
and pipes thence, have been laid ; also about 144,000 
yards of pipes in the city ; but the Muligahakanda reser- 
voir (to hold 9 million gallons) 100 feet top water above 
sea, proved a failure at its first and second trials. [Third 
and, doubtless, final trial.] The water supply is, however, 
being utilized independently from Labugama. 

POSTAGE. 

Ceylon enjoys rather better than the boon of a " penny 
postage" for letters, the rate being 5 cents of a rupee, 
equal, at present, to about |d., on each half ounce ; two 
cents postage for newspapers, besides post-cards ; but a 
fairly moderate rate for book, commercial packets, and 
parcel postage is a desideratum. External postage to 
many parts of the world moderate, although uniformity is 
much required, the letter rate being 80 cents to the 
Australian colonies, and 28 cents to the United Kingdom, 
while only 25 cents to the Continent of Europe. To India 



Ceylon : Summary of Information, 809 

by Dak or B.I. steamers same as local rates. 128 post 
offices in Ceylon. Total of letters through Ceylon post 
offices, over 15 millions per annum, or between five and 
six per head. Postal revenue, B266,000 ; Telegraph, 
E65,000 ; total, E880,000. Total expenditure, E445,000, for 
which the large correspondence, including heavy parcels, 
of the Government Departments is carried, and o&cial 
telegrams delivered frea If all officials paid postage and 
telegrams, the Postal- Telegraph Department would show 
a clear profit. 

TELEGBAPH BATES. 

The telegraph stations now open in Ceylon (24 in all) 
are : — Anuradhapura, drd class ; Badulla, drd ; Batticaloa, 
8rd; Colombo, 1st; Dikoya, 8rd; Galle, 2nd; Gampola, 
8rd ; Hatton, 8rd ; Jafiha, 2nd ; Kalutara, 8rd ; Eandy, 
2nd ; Kurunegala, 8rd ; Lunugala, 8rd ; Mannar, 8rd ; 
Matale, 8rd ; Nawalapitiya, 8rd ; Nuwara Eliya, 2nd 
(during season, January to June) and 8rd ; Polgahawela, 
8rd ; Trincomalee, 8rd ; Talawakele, 8rd ; Mount Lavinia, 
8rd; Moratuwa, 8rd; Nanuoya, 8rd. 

On and from the 1st February, 1887, the following new 
scale of charges was levied on inland telegrams : — 

1. — There are three classes of telegrams — Urgent, Ordi- 
nary, and Deferred, and the following are the rates of 
charge for State and private telegrams between any two 

offices in Ceylon ; — 

First eight words Each additional 

Glass. or groups of three word or group 

figures. of three figures. 

B. Cts. B. Cts. 

Deferred 40 5 

Ordinary 80 10 

Urgent 1 60 20 

EVEBY-DAY TABLE OF TELEGBAPH BATES FOB OBDpfABT 

FOBEION MESSAGES. 

From any Ceylon Station, 

To all countries in Europe, including Great Britain, b;o. 

except those named below, via Suez 2*94 

„ Teheran 2-94 

„ Turkey *. 8-^9 



If 99 )9 






810 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

B.O. 

To EuBsia, via Suez 2 94 

„ „ „ Teheran t 269 

„ „ „ Turkey and Odessa 2*69 

„ Turkey „ Suez 2*94 

„ „ „ Turkey or Fao 212i 

„ n n Teheran-Batoum 2*94 

„ Aden and Perim, via Bombay 2*06 

M Zanzibar, ria Bombay-Aden* 4'87i 

„ Durban (Natal), ma Bombay-Aden 6*56 

„ G. Colony, all places, rta Bombay-Aden 6*69 

„ Suez, via Suez 2*66 

„ Hongkong, via Madras 4*00 

Japan, via Madras! 675 

Amoy, Saddle Island, Shanghai, and Foochow, 

via Madras 5*12^ 

Penang, via Madras 2*00 

„ Malacca „ 2*44 

„ Singapore „ 2*56 

„ Java „ 2-87i 

,, Port Darwin, S. and W. Australia, and Victoria, 

via Madras. 6*44 

„ New South Wales, via Madras 5*50 

„ Queensland „ 6*94 

,1 New Zealand „ 6*25 

„ Tasmania „ 5*81 

„ New York, via Suez 8*50 

„ Canada „ 8*50 

„ Cuba (Cienferegos and Havana) via Suez 5*81 

„ Jamaica, via Suez 7*56 

„ Kio de Janeiro, via Suez-Lisbon 8*12 J 

Code words of more than ten letters are absolutely in- 
admissible in private foreign messages. A foreign message 
may consist of only two chargeable words, viz., office of 
destination and addressee's name. 

Ceylon Post Office Telegraphs — consist of 677 miles 
of line and 1,178 miles of wire. Manaar Gulf Cable 80 
miles. Telephone lines, for departmental use only, 7*45 
miles. Total number of messages despatched in 1885 — 
65,227, and total receipts for messages for the same 
period was B221,822. 

* In the case of State messages the charge is B3'50 per word, via 
Bombay, 
t Bpeoial rate to Tsashima, via Madras, E7'87i per word. 



% 



Ceylon : Summary of Information, 811 



DISEASES. 

The most formidable diseases of Ceylon are malarious 
fevers, malignant dysentery, and wasting diarrhoea, with 
** sore mouth." These are varied forms of ** fever ** which 
occupies here the place of lung disease in England. Ele- 
phantiasis or '< Cochin leg *' is fever caused by inflamma- 
tion of the absorbent vessels and glands ; the remote cause 
of the inflanmiation is supposed to be a blood worm in the 
circulation. " Parangi,'* a loathsome congenital disease, 
aggravated by scarcity of nutritious food, prevails in some 
of the more remote portions of the island. It is said to 
resemble the " yaws " of the West Indies. Ceylon boils, 
signs (generally) of debility, are sometimes very trying, 
but rapidly disappear on a '* change'' to the cool mountain 
regions, or vice versa to seaside. Liver disease is often 
troublesome, but is far less prevalent than on the continent 
of India, and sunstroke exceedingly rare. Cholera and 
smallpox become occasionally epidemic, but Europeans 
very seldom fall victims to either. With facilities for 
occasional change, and the exercise of care and temperance, 
the chances for European life here are scarcely, if at all, 
inferior to what they are in England. The large majority 
of the planters enjoy robust health. Surveyors, road 
officers, and railway engineers, when compelled to traverse 
feverish regions and endure exposure to sun and rain, 
incur much greater risk, as also planting pioneers in new 
districts. With all its moisture, the climate is favourable 
to the extension of consumptive lives. Here, as elsewhere 
in the tropics, life is practically passed in the open air, so 
that vitiated air in dwellings is seldom a source of disease. 
Children of European parents can generaUy remain in 
Ceylon till eight or nine years, and in the hill-country 
even longer, especially at Nuwera Eliya, with its average 
temperature of 58 degrees. Colombo is a specially healthy 
town, and its sanitation will be still more improved when 
the hiU Water Supply is fully provided. Government 
Civil Medical Department and Hospitals cost over 
E700,000 per annum: about 200,000 cases treated in 
hospitals and dispensaries annually ; in hospitals alone, 
24,000 cases with 8,000 deaths, rest cured or relieved ; 
there are 850 lunatics and 200 lepers in asylums. About 
2,000 paupers noted by Government; no Poor Laws; 



812 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

relief expended in town by Friend-in-need Societies 
▼olontarily managed and supported, with some aid from 
General Eeyenue. 



OBJECTS OF SPECIAL INTEEEST TO 
STEANGERS IN CEYLON. 

Colombo and Westebn Province. — The Fort, Govern- 
ment offices, Sir Edward Barnes's statue, The Grand 
Oriental Hotel. The Military Buildings, Galle Face 
Esplanade and drive. The Lake; the Law Courts at 
Hulftsdorp, with busts of the late C. A. Lorenz and Sir 
E. F. Morgan, Kt., (by a Ceylonese, E. G. Andriesz). 
To^n Hall, with pictures of H.RH. the Duke of Edin- 
burgh, Sir Hercules Eobinson, Sir William Gregory, the 
late C. A. Lorenz, m.l.c, and Sir C. P. Layard, k.o.m.o. 
Cinnamon Gardens ; Circular Walk Gardens, near which 
is situated the Colombo Museum, with statue of Sir 
William Gregory, K.o.M.a. Hulftsdorp Mills, and other 
establishments for preparing coffee, cinchona bark, coconut 
oil, and coir. Cinnamon culture, peeling and bahng at 
Maradana, or at Ekela and Kadirana, near Negombo. 
Plumbago stores in Brownrigg street, Cinnamon Gardens. 
Welikada Jail, Lunatic and Leper Asylums. Eoch 
Memorial Tower, Government Civil Hospital. Banyan 
tree, Hunupitiya. Eailway and Breakwater Works. Gov- 
ernment Factory and Elephant Shed. Colombo Ironworks. 
Gasworks. Mahkaganda Waterworks Eeservoir. Alfred 
Model Farm towards Eotte. General Cemetery and Galle 
Face Cemetery, for memorial stones. Wolvendal Dutch 
Church, with memorials of Dutch Governors on walls and 
floors. St. Peter's Episcopal Church, with some interesting 
monuments on the walls. Eoman Catholic Cathedral at 
Kotahena. Colombo Eoyal College. St. Thomas' and 
Wesley College and other schools. Moor (Muhammadan) 
boys' school ; Mission Schools, Borella and Eollupitiya. 
Ancient tortoise at Tanque Salgado, and large kumbuk tree 
near mouth of river, at MutwaL Crow Island in mouth of 
river. Quasi peat and breccia formations north side of 
mouth of river and canals. Bridge of Boats and Eailway 
Bridge across Kelaui river. View of Adam's Peak from 
Colombo in early morning during N.E. monsoon. Boat 
trip on river to Kelani Buddhist Temple. Buddhist 



Ceylon :' Summdfy of Information. 813 

Temples at Eelani and Eotte. Bicfa palm, bambii and 
genejral vegetation on banks of river. Mission station 
and schools at Eotte, Gonawala, or Moratawa. Tea, 
Liberian coffee, and cacao cultivation, at Ealutara, Han- 
wella or Polgahawela. Henaratgoda Government Ex- 
perimental Gardens. Trip to Eatnapura and scenes of 
Gem digging via side of Eelani river. 

Galle and Colombo Eoad. — Groves of coconut palms, 
with jak, breadfruit, and other trees along the whole 
routa Bentota resthouse with river and oyster fishing 
and sea-bathing. View of interior with mountain range 
from the road at Beruwala near the 82nd milestone. 
Ealutara river (Ealuganga or black river), bridge, and 
town. Bail way along seashore from Ealutara to Colombo. 
Panadnre outlet for extensive backwaters. Moratuwa, a 
prosperous village of carpenters. Mount Lavinia Board- 
ing House. 

Gallb and Southern Provincb. — All Saints* Church, 
Galle. Native bazaars and shops of jewellers and dealers 
in tortoiseshell and carved work ; Wakwella and Cinnamon 
Gardens near Galle ; drives and view alongside Ginganga 
of the Haycock and Adam's Peak mountains ; Baddegama 
Mission Station; Bichmond Hill Mission Station, and 
view. Cultivation of sugar and lemon grass, by Messrs* 
Winter & Sons, and others. View from Buona Vista, near 
Galle, and Mission Station. Tanks in Matara district. 
Temple ruins and salt formations, Hambantota. Temple 
ruins at Dewundara ('*Dondra Head") near Matara. 
Weligama Bay. Urubokka dam, Weligama, and rock 
figure of Eusta Eaja or the leper king. View of the Fort 
and Harbour of Galle from the site of the Eoman Catholic 
Chapel at Ealuwella. 

Colombo to Eandy, Gampola, Nawalapitiya, Hatton, and 
Nanuoya; also to Matale. — Eicefields at Mahara and 
along line. Mahaoya (river) and vegetation. Eadugan- 
nawa pass, Dekanda valley, Allagala mountain and 
railway inbline with Miyangaia gallery, ** Sensation Bock " 
and tunnels. View of Dekanda valley from Incline. 
View looking back from Sensation Bock. Dawson's 
Monument at Eadugannawa. Peradeniva satinwood 
bridge, and railway iron lattice bridge. View from rail- 
way of the Mahaweliganga and of Pussellawa mountains, 
beyond Gampola. View of Mahaweliganga and Eotmale 



814 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

on railway and at Pasbage, and of Adam's Peak, Dolos- 
bage, and Ambagamawa onwards to Nawalapitiya. View 
towards sea over Yakdesse and low country from Ambaga- 
mawa ; waterfalls and rocky glen before Hogs* baek 
tunnels; the Wattawella valley; Dikoya valley and 
Adam's Peak ; Oreat Western mountain from Eottagalla 
valley ; view over Passellawa and distant mountains from 
St. Andrews ; St Clair falls ; Devon falls ; the coup d'oeil 
of upland and mountain forest and river scenery from 
side of Oreat Western and Nanuoya. The Matale railway 
bridge over the Mahaweliganga, view of Hunasgirikanda 
and Etapola, views of the Matale valley, Aluwihara, Bala- 
kadawa pass. Tea on Mariawatte ; coffee in Dikoya or 
Ao^patana : cinchona in Dimbula ; cacao cultivation on 
Palakele and Wariyapola. 

KiOfDT, Central Province, XJva, &c. — Sir Henry Ward's 
statue in Eandy. Dalada temple at Eandy. Audience 
Hall and Octagon. Prince of Wales' Fountain. New 
Jail Police Station and Eachcheri. Messrs. Walker & 
Co.'s factory for coffee and tea-preparing machinery, &c. 
Matale railway. Hantane Peak or Matana Patana for 
view, Oregory road, and Lady Horton's Walk. The 
Pavilion. Peradeniya Botanic Gardens, Oampola Bridge. 
Uva, Dimbula and Matale, for coffee, tea, cacao and 
cinchona cultivation. Eamboda falls and pass. Eadi- 
yanlena, Eotmale ; and Devon and St. Clair falls, 
Dimbula. Hiiluganga falls in the Eiiuokles. View of 
Adam*s Peak from Ambagamawa road. Waterfalls in the 
Horseshoe Valley, Maskeliya, and at the Balangoda end. 
Adam's Peak, the climb up and view from. Trip to 
Anuradhapura, via Matale and DambuUa (where rock 
temple) ; ruins at Polonnaruwa ; the great tank region, 
&c. Elk hunting, elephant shooting, gemming, &c. The 
trip to Badulla and Haputale. Ella pass and the hi&rhest 
waterfall in Ceylon. Badulla temple and fort, and hot 
springs. 

NuwARA Elfta. — The drive from the Nanuoya station 
upwards ; the Blackpool and variegated forest tints. The 
*' Longden Bead " along the side of the Nanuoya ; the 
drive round the Lake and Moon Plains ; on the new 
Udapussellawa road, with beautiful alternation of forest 
and grass land (*' patanas "), magnificent gorges, fern- 
covered gullies and waterfalls ; the waterfall and '* grotto '* 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 815 

on Portswood estate ; the view of the lake, band and river 
from Lady Horton's Walk above the bond ; '' The Lady's 
Waterfall" below the patanas leading from the band 
(EUiewatte Gorge), and Lady Horton's Walk ; the view of 
Adam's Peak, Dimbola, &c., from One Tree Hill ; also of 
the whole circle of mountains, Adam*s Peak, Kirigalpotta, 
Eudahugala, Totapola, Hakgala, Haputale, Namunaku- 
lakanda, Udapussellawa, Lover*s Leap, Pidurutalagala, 
Kiklimana, and of the town, plains and lakes, from Naseby 
Hill, 6,400 feet ; of Uva from Hakgala Gardens, with the 
gardens themselves, fernery, &c., and the delightfal drive 
down. The climb to Pidurutalagala summit. The old 
graveyard. 

Jaffna. — The Fort and Batteries, the Dutch Church, 
the Batticotta Seminary, ** the bottomless well,** the F. N. 
Society's Hospital, the market, salt lewayas, and pearl 
banks off Arippu. Tobacco cultivation and the coral wells 
at Jaffna, &c. Giant's Tank ruins in Mannar district. 

Batticaloa. — Fort and Batteries, beautiful Bay of 
Yendeloos. Extensive rice and coconut cultivation. 

TanfcoMALEE. — One of the finest harbours in the world. 
Fort Ostenburg, Fort Frederick. Nillavelli salt pans. 
Hot springs at Kanniya. 

Dambulla, Anubadhapuba, Pollonabuwa, &c. — See for 
full particulars of sights and way to make journey : — 
•* Buried Cities of Ceylon." 

Shooting Tbips. — For snipe, hares, and small deer in 
Western, Southern, and other provinces. For Elephant, 
to Hambantota and Bintenne. For elk, cheetah, &c., in 
highei: hill regions. For crocodiles, bears, &c., in Northern 
Tank regions. 

« 

WEITEKS ON CEYLON. AND AUTHOKITIES TO 
BE CONSULTED FOE MORE DETAILED 

•INFORMATION. 

De Barros, De Couto, Ribeiro (Lee*s translation, with 
valuable appendices), Yalentyn, BaldsBus, Enox (edited by 
Philalethes), Percival, Cordiner, Lord Yalentia, Bertolacci, 
Marshall, Davy, Forbes, Bennett, Knighton, Pridham, 
Emerson Tennent ; Fergusons. Casie Chitty's Gazetteer; 
Parliamentary papers ; Ceylon Blue Books ; Governors' 
Speeches ; Sir H. Ward's collected Minutes and Speeches ; 



816 . Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Ceylon Almanacks, Civil Lists, Manuals, Directories, &c. 
For Natural History : — Moon, Gardner, Thwaites, Kelaart, 
Hooker and Thomson, Templeton, Nietner, E. A. Layard, 
W. Fergnson, Boake, Steuart, Tennent (monograph on 
Elephant and on Pearl Oysters, Natural History of Ceylon), 
Lefrge, Moore, &c. On Oriental and Buddhistical Literature : 
— Tumour, Casie Chitty, Gogerly, Hardy, James Alwis, 
Fox, Callaway, Tolfrey, Upham, Childers, Khys Dayids ; 
with transactions of Asiatic Societies of Britain, Bengal, 
Bombay, Ceylon, and Paris, American and German 
Oriental Societies, *« Indian Antiquary," " Orientalist," 
*« Literary Kegister," &c. On Antiquities, — besides above, 
Burrows' ** Buried Cities of Ceylon." On Elephant and 
Elk Shooting : — ^Baker. For Laws and Principles of Justice^ 
Bee *« Thomson's Institutes,*' collected volumes of procla- 
mations, ordinances, &c., with index, and reports of cases 
by Marshall, Murray, Morgan, Lorenz, Beling and Van- 
derstraaten, Beven and Mills, &c., and Supreme Court 
Circular volumes. On Kandyan Law : — Sawers, Armour, 
&c. Tamil and Muhammadan Law : — Muttukistna. On 
Coffte Planting : — Sabonadiere's Coffee Planter of Ceylon ; 
A. Brown's Manual ; E. E. Lewis, Aliquis (description of 
coffee planting in rhyme, by the late Captain Jolly), 
pamphlets by Dr. Elliott, George Wall, P. Moir, BallarcQe, 
Cross, Owen, &c. New Products: — On Tea, Liberian 
Coffee, Cinchona, Cacao, Cardamoms, Coconut and Cinna- 
mon planting, see Manuals published at Ceylon Observer 
Office. Poetry : — Captain Anderson's " Ceylon " and other 
poems. On Missionary Operations : — Harvard, Selkirk, 
Emerson's Tennent's «* Christianity in Ceylon," Life of the 
** Apostolic " Daniel, Hardy's Jubilee Memorials of 
Wesleyan Mission, Jones's Jubilee Memorials of Church 
Mission, Memoir of Mrs. Winslow and other American 
works, with reports of Baptist, American, Wesleyan, 
Church, and Komish Missions. On Sinhalese Language : — 
Clough, Lambrick, Chater, Carter, James Alwis, Jones, 
Nicholson, C. Alwis, &c. On Tamil Language: — Winslow, 
Percival, Eev. W. Clark, A. Joseph, A. M. Ferguson, jun., 
&c. For the most complete repertory of General and 
Statistical Information affecting the Colony, more especially 
of its Planting Enterprise, see successive editions of the 
** Ceylon Directory and Handbook of Information," by A. 
M. & J. Ferguson. For local Guides : — See Ferguson's 



Ceylon : Summary of Information. 317 

** Ceylon Bailway and Sanitarium " ; Burrows* «* Kandy 
and Central Province" ; Skeen's •• Colombo and Environs" ; 
Maitland*s *• Colombo and the Railway Service." For in- 
formation bearing on every branch of Tropical Agriculture, 
see the Tropical Agriculturist published monthly at the 
Ceylon Observer Office. 



APPENDIX IX. 

CEYLON AND ITS PLANTING INDUSTEIES. 
{From the London " Times,'' August 24, 1884.) 

TO THE EDITOB OF ** THE TIMES." 

BoTAL Colonial Institute, 15, Strand, 

August 28, 1884. 

Sib, — Ceylon and its planters have been several times 
referred to in the discussion in The Times on the prospects 
of sugar cultivation in the West Indies, and perhaps a 
brief resume of the experience gained in the Eastern colony 
during a series of trying years may be of some interest 
and of service to planters elsewhere. 

It is pretty well known how in the course of forty years, 
from 1887 onwards, Ceylon rose from being a mere mili- 
tary dependency (involving a considerable annual burden 
to the mother country) to the position of the first and 
wealthiest of British Crown Colonies. During that period 
its population, revenue, and trade so steadily advanced 
that they well-nigh excelled those of all the West Indian 
colonies put together. The change was due almost en- 
tirely to the development of coflfee-planting, which sent in 
the heyday of prosperity in Ceylon as much in one year as 
£5,000,000 sterling worth of the fragrant bean into the 
markets of the world, chiefly through London. Other 
branches of agriculture prospered and advanced during 
those forty years, such as palm tree, cinnamon, and rice 



Ceylon and its Planting Industries. 819 

cultivation in the low country — coffee being grown on the 
hills — in the hands of the Sinhalese and Tamils. But it 
was through the capital introduced and the revenue 
created by coffee that the natives were enabled to extend 
their groves of coconut and palmyra palms, and that the 
Government could devote large sums to the restoration 
and construction of irrigation works, more particularly in 
supplying village sluices and tanks where the people were 
ready to make use of them. 

So far as European colonists were concerned, coffee- 
plantiug almost exclusively claimed their attention, and 
many of the Sinhalese also embarked in this enterprize. 
While coffee continued profitable, the counsels of those 
who advocated the cultivation of other products was 
treated as so much idle breath. Theoretically it was 
shown many years ago that the climate and much of the 
soil of Ceylon were better suited for tea than coffee ; but 
still the felling and clearing of the most beautiful and 
varied tropical forests in the world went on, until from 400 
to 600 square miles of country were covered with the one 
shrub, Voffea Arahica^ carefully planted, and scientifically 
pruned — topped at the height of an average gooseberry 
bush. Nature was, however, preparing the punishment 
of a gross violation of her laws — a violation paralleled by 
the would-be dependence of the Irish forty years ago on 
potatoes, or by the cultivation in other countries of too 
wide and unbroken an area of wheat, or of the vine. The 
penalty in Ceylon was first manifested in 1869, through a 
minute fungus on the leaf, very similar to the oidium in 
the vine, rust in wheat, and the potato disease. For some 
seven or eight years not much was thought of it, save as 
an inducement to more Uberal, careful cultivation; but 
the scientists called in to investigate, showed that little or 
no practical check could be offered, and within fifteen 
years, — ^to make a long story short — the minute, despised 
fungus had swept 100,000 acres of coffee cultivation out 
of existence — the poorly cultivated native gardens and 
neglected plantations being naturally the first to be aban- 
doned. At the same time the export of the coffee bean 
fell last year to one-fourth the maximum of 1,000,000 cwt. 

Here was certainly a grave misfortune overtaking a 
body of industrious men who had been the mainstay of a 
country's prosperity, and, moreover, their dif^culties were 



820 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

aggravated by an extraordinary development of coffee 
production in Brazil. This was due to the interior of 
that South American Empire being rapidly opened up by 
railways made out of borrowed money ; the labour, at the 
same time, used in cultivating fresh coffee plantations 
being slave. Such competition might be deemed unfair — 
more particularly as it has taken ten years* agitation in 
Ceylon to secure an extension of less than 70 miles of 
railway from the Colonial Office ; but, in place of looking 
to the Government for factitious aid, the Ceylon planters 
ten years ago turned their attention to new products with 
all the energy and inteUigence for which they are famous 
beyond any other tropical cultivators. 

In many cases, of course, the new products, such as 
cinchona, tea, cacao (chocolate), and rubber, were experi- 
mented with as supplementary to the 175,000 acres of 
select coffee still maintained in cultivation ; and let it be 
noted that in interspersing his coffee fields with cinchona 
and rubber trees, in planting belts or boundaries of such 
or areas of reserve in tea, the Ceylon planter was using 
one of the best means of checking the free dissemination 
of the fungus {hemileia vastatrix). As a consequence, 
possibly, or perhaps because the virulence of this pest is 
abating, during the current season Ceylon is giving an 
improved crop of coffee, and the export will be in excess 
of last year's.* 

At the same time, the plantings of tea and cinchona 
bark have become established and important industries. 
The export of the latter this year will probably be equal 
to 10,000,000 lb.* against a beginning in 1869 with only 
28 oz. Nor is it expected that South America can ever 
again compete with the East — Ceylon, India, and Java — in 
the production of the invaluable febrifuge. 

Again, it is acknowledged on all hands now that Ceylon 
is better adapted to become a great tea-producing coun- 
try than ever it was to lead with coffee. Situated in the 
pathway of the two monsoons, with an ample and well- 
distributed rainfall, in a most forcing climate, Ceylon is a 
perfect paradise for leaf crops. Fruit is more uncertain, 
and even in the best days of coffee great uncertainty often 
prevailed during the six weeks or two months of blossom- 

* It waa 324,000 cwt. against 260,000 cwt. the previous year. 
t It was 11,492,000 lb. 



Ceylon and its Planting Industries. 321 

ing season, when too much or too little rain often 
destroyed the chance of a due return for a whole year's 
labour. Coffee, too, could only be cultivated within a 
certain limited belt, from 2,500 up to 5,000 feet above sea 
level, whereas tea flourishes almost from sea-level to 
6,000 feet and over. The tea shrub, in fact, is one 
of the hardiest of plants, growing in the open-air at 
Washington, United States, in New Zealand, &c. But 
the great advantage possessed by Ceylon and India for 
tea planting, is in cheap, suitable labour for the work of 
cultivation, leaf plucking, and preparing. The little 
island of Ceylon, as now opened up by railways and 
splendid roads, offers great advantages over most Indian 
districts for tea production. From both countries the 
tea supplied is of a pure, high quality. China teas 
have, in many cases, deteriorated of recent years, while 
the Japanese '* greens,'' chiefly sent to America, are 
nearly all adulterated. I may, in passing, say that should 
the war now begun between France and China interrupt 
the tea trade or production in the Far East, there is no 
place whence a return can be so expeditiously got for the 
investment of capital in tea as from Ceylon. There is a 
wide extent of land available for tea, at an upset price of 
10 rupees (16s.) per acre freehold, and a good crop of leaf 
can be had within three years of the planting. Assam 
planters who visit Ceylon are loud in their praise of what 
they see in the growth of our tea, our flne climate, 
unequalled roads, good supply of labour, &c. The pro- 
gress already made in the tea industry may be seen from 
the figures appended. 

The cacao, or chocolate-yielding fruit tree, is another 
new article of cultivation which has been successfully 
established in several districts in the island ; the Ceylon 
product from this plant being pronounced in Mincing-lane 
to be equal to the very finest received from Trinidad or 
South America. 

Indiarubber-yielding trees of various descriptions have, 
during the past few years, been extensively planted in 
Ceylon; but the industry is still purely experimental 
although good samples have been seen in the London 
market. 

In fibres there ought, by and by, to be a great develop- 
ment of industry and trade in Ceylon, and, indeed, 

22 



822 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

''capital*' is the only element wanted to secure rapid 
progress in all the branches referred to. The fall of 
the Oriental Bank has reacted disastrously, rendering 
money very scarce for the poor but industrious planter, 
while, again, the credit of the colony has been damaged 
in many places through the non-success for many years 
and the final collapse of the Oeylon (but more properly 
Mauritius) Company, Limited. It is at this time, and in 
view of the absolute scarcity of capital and depression 
of credit, that many planters in Ceylon think their 
industries in *' new products'* should receive some official 
support ; but they have no idea of interfering with the 
great principles of free trade or of making a grievance 
out of the advantage possessed by the slave-owning 
planters of BrazD. 

It is a matter for congratulation that from the very 
beginning, the Ceylon planting enterprize has been based 
on a system of free labour, and that its products are 
so universally appreciated and beneficial as coffee, tea, 
quinine, chocolate, cinnamon, palm oils, &c. There is 
every reason to feel assured of a profitable return for 
money judiciously invested in these ** new products " in 
Ceylon, and the much-tried sugar-planters of the West 
Indies cannot do better than make experiments in the 
same direction, although I am free to admit that the 
comparative scarcity and dearness of their labour places 
them at a heavy disadvantage. 

J. FEEGUSON, 
Of the Ceylon Observer and Tropical Agriculturist, 



The following are Statistics of some of the Planting 
Industries in Ceylon : — 

Coffee, — 1837 : — 2,500 acres cultivated ; exported about 
10,000 cwt. 1847 : — 46,000 acres cultivated ; exported 
about 200,000 cwt. 1857 : — 85,000 acres cultivated ; ex- 
ported about 450,000 cwt. 1867 :— 168,000 acres culti- 
vated: exported about 868,000 cwt. 1877 :— 272,000 
acres cultivated; exported about 976,000 cwt. 1888: — 
174,000 acres cultivated ; exported about 265,000 cwt., 
while 1884 is expected to show an export of over 850,000 
cwt. of coffee — a welcome revival.* 

* The actual export of coffee for season 1883-4 was 324,000. owt. 



Ceylon and its Planting Industries. 823 

Tea, — The export began with 482 lb. in season 1875-6 : 
the export rose to 81,595 lb. in season 1878-9; and the 
export rose to 1,522,882 lb. in season 1882-8. The cur- 
rent season will probably show an export in excess of 
two million pounds,* and when the 85,000 acres of tea 
planted are in full bearing, in 1887-8, the season^s ship- 
ments ought to be equal to 10 million pounds. Eventually 
it is estimated Ceylon should have 200,000 acres under 
tea, and an annual export of 60 million pounds and 
upwards. It depends on home capitalists very much how 
soon this result may be realized. 

Cacao, — The export of cacao (or cocoa, as it is called in 
the market) began with 10 cwt. in 1878, and last year it 
was 4,000 cwt., while for the current year it is likely 
to reach 10,000 cwt.+ 

Cinchona bark began with an export of 28 ounces in 
1869 ; rose to 507,000 lb. in 1879 ; and was last season 
equal to seven million pounds ; while for 1888-4 the 
return will exceed 10 millions.} 

Palm Trees and Cinnamon. — Of the products of palm 
trees and cinnamon bushes, cultivated chiefly by native 
owners, Ceylon now sends an annual value of from 
dB800,000 to a million sterling into the markets of the 
world, against less than one-fifth of this value thirty years 
ago. 

[For later statistics of exports see table on page 272.] 



CEYLON AND ITS PLANTING INDUSTRIES. 
The Editob op The Economist, 

Colombo, October 26, 1886. 

Sir, — The Ceylon commercial season closes on the 
80th September each year, and the Colombo Chamber of 
Commerce Tables are made up as soon after as possible. 

The actual results arrived at for our staple export trade 
cannot fail to be of much interest to those who have 
watched the gradual development of other planting 

* The actual export of tea for season 1883-4 was 2,263,000 lbs* 
f The actual export of cocoa was 9,863 cwt. 
j The export of bark equalled 11} million lb. 



Ceylon m the Jubilee Year, 



824 

indnstries einee the appe&ranoe of the leaf fangns which 
BO woefblly affected oar coffee. Having drawn the 
attention of West Indian planters through the colnmns 
of the London press in August, 1884, to the wa; in which 
Ceylon planters had developed " new prodncts " to make 
np for Uie failure in coffee, I would again put forward a 
few figures in support and illustration of the position I 
then took up. 

Tba is rapidly becoming the main staple of the planters 
of Ceylon, and everything points to our export of this 
important new product rivalling that of India in about 
ten yeare' time. So tax, it is comparatively the day of 
small things, but the following figures show the beginning 
of an important enterprise. It will be observed that the 
export progresses more nearly in a geometrical than 
an aritmnetical ratio. The Ceylon exporta of Tea have 
developed as follows : — 





THl. 


'"" -c" ■" 


"° ao. 


"'■ ]Z " 


80th 


8.P.. 


188S 


!•'« 






































































































do. 




do. 






1.776 



Cinchona Babk shows the next chief development 
an^ong new products, as the following figoies will show :— 



















Cn.aKO«.. 






















































lb. 


™ ■??■ '" 


lat 


Oct. 


886 


to 


T 


SBpl. 


m 


isan9i3 




























































































Do. 


do. 








do. 




«TS 


178,187 


Do. 










do. 




H.t 





Ceylen and its Planting Industries. 325 



For a medicinal bark, and the preparations therefrom, 
there is no such scope for demand and consumption as in 
the case of tea. But to a fairly remunerative market, it 
is believed that Ceylon can supply 7 to 10 million lb. of 
cinchona bark annually without any difficulty ; while if 
there were only the market, the export of the past season 
could probably be maintained for some years to come. 

Cacao, or the cocoa or chocolate yielding plant, has not 
succeeded quite so widely as was expected in Ceylon, but 
there are certain districts in which the cultivation has 
now proved very successful. Some mistakes were made 
at first in the mode of planting, but these are now gene- 
rally rectified, and there is the fair promise of increasing 
returns. This is especially the case during the present 
year, the weather having been very favourable to cacao. 
The annual exports have been as follows : — 





















Cocoa. 




















owt. 


Total 


Exports 


from 


1st 


Oct. 


1885 to SOth 


Sept. 


18-6 


18,847 




J)o. 




do. 




1884 


do. 




1885 


6,758 




Do. 




do. 




1888 


do. 




1884 


9,863 




Do. 




do. 




1882 


do. 




1888 


8,588 




Do. 




do. 




1881 


do. 




1882 


1,018 




Do. 




do. 




1880 


do. 




1881 


479 




Do. 




do. 




1879 


do. 




1880 


122 



Cabdamoms have been, for many years, quite a minor 
article among our products, but since the European 
planter has given his attention to this spice, the colony 
has taken the foremost rank for its exports, Ceylon, in 
fact, now ruling the European market for cardamoms as 
well as for cinchona bark. The exports of this spice have 
risen as follows : — 



















Car- 


















damoms. 


















lb. 


Total 


Exports 


from 


1st 


Oct. 1885 


to SOth 


Sept. 


1886 


236,056 




Do. 




do. 


1884 


do. 




1885 


152.406 




Do. 




do. 


1888 


do. 




1884 


66,319 




Do. 




do. 


1882 


do. 




1883 


21,655 




Do. 




do. 


1881 


do. 




1882 


23,127 




Do. 




do. 


1880 


do. 




1881 


16,069 



In contrast with these instances of steady, continuous 
progress with what may be called ** new products," I have 
to place the return for our staple coffee, showing an 
equally steady decline, consequent on the weakening 



Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 



effecta of the fatal leaf fnngns. The export figures are as 
follows : — 













Oo»not,c 


™. 




Ptant. 


Kutin. 


Tc*^. 


""■^r- 


urn Irt Ost. 


IRW 






SIGHTS 








































































\m 
















































m» 


do. 









It is Batisfoctory to know that Tsa is so folly taking the 
place of coffee, over 130,000 * acres being now planted with 
this prodnot, which grows well, not only within the limits 
of oUmate suited to coffee — namely, horn 1,600 to 5,000 
feet above sea-level — but from a few score of feet above, 
or almost sea-level, to nearly 7,000 feet altitude. The 
tea-plant is, in fact, one of the hardiest on the long list of 
the tropical planter, and nowhere has it found a more 
congenial home than in moist, hot Ceylon. The cry of over- 
production has, indeed, of late, been raised in reference 
to tea ; but if English-speaking folks in America take to 
drinking tea in place of their favourite coffee, now 
likely, year by year, to decrease in supply, there will be 
B wide demand added to the present one. Moreover, so 
far as Ceylon is concerned, it has been shown that, through 
the great advantages poBsesBed by the colony, that of a 
superior quality can be produced more cheaply here than 
in its great rival India, so that the remoter districts of the 
latter country must first suffer. The exports in which 
the Ceyloneae people are chiefiy interested, i.e., cinnamon, 
plumbago (our only commercial mineral), esBential greas 
oils, and the products of the coconut palm, i.e., oil, 
copra, and coir fibres, keep well up, although the crop of 
coconnts is liable to alternate, according to the season. 
In a &vonrable season, the number of nuts gathered in 

* Over 150,000 aoies now, in 1B87. 



Ceylon and its Planting Industries. 327 

Ceylon is now estimated at a thousand millions — the 
greater portion, however, being utilized locally for the 
food of the people. 

Briefly, the total value of our staple exports for the past 
season may be put at dB2,400,000 sterling ; while for the 
current commercial year, October, 1886, to September, 
1887, the following estimates prepared for the Ceylon 
Observer from district returns, indicate a very considera- 
ble advance : — 



Season 1886-7. — Probable Shipment of Staple Exports, 



Coflee 

Cinchona bark 

Goooa 

Cardamoms 

Coconut oil 

Copra 

Coconut Poonao 

Cinnamon 

Do. chips 
Plumbago 
Coir of aJl kinds 
Ebony 
Deer Horns 
Sapan Wood 
Kitul Fibre 
Essential Oils 



*•• 



Quantity. Value. 

186,000 cwt. at 76/ £693, 760 

14,000.000 lb. at 1/lJ 787,600 

12,000,000 lb. at 8d. 400,000 

22,000 cwt. at 80/ 88,000 

300,000 lb. at 2/ 30,000 

280,000 cwt. at 27/6 386,000 

160,000 cwt. at 14/0 106,000 

60,000 cwt. at 7/ 17,600 

1,600,000 lb. at 1/3 93,760 

600,000 lb. at 6d. 10,416 

200,000 cwt. at 8/ 80,000 

110,000 cwt. at 15/0 84,000 

7,600 tons at 100/ 37,500 

2,000 cwt. at 50/ 6,000 

2,600 cwt. at 40/ 6,000 

1,800 cwt. at 60/ 4,600 

6,600,000 oz. at Id 27,000 

Total... £2, 863,916 



J. FEEGUSON, 
Of the Ceylon Observer and Tropical Agriculturist. 



APPENDIX X, 

THE PEOSPEOTS OF ENGLA^ND'S CHIEP 

TEOPIOAL COLONY. 

AN INTEBYIBW WITH A CETLQN JOUBNALIST (mB. JOHN 

febouson). 

{From '* The Pall Mall GazeUe,'' Au^mt^dth ; and ** Budget" 

Sept. 6, 1884.) 

** We have not now ' all our eggs in one basket.' At 
present the city will not look at Ceylon as a field for 
investment. Money is scarce owing to the fall of the 
Oriental Bank, and our credit has been greatly damaged 
by the collapse of the Ceylon fmore properly the Mauri- 
tius) Company. It should be known, however, that in 
our climate, roads, railways, cheap free labour, we have 
every encouragement for tropical ae:riculture in Ceylon. 
Our natives are being so rapidly educated that by 1900 
A.D. English will practically be the language of the 
majority of the people. Colombo is the shipping centre 
of the Eastern world, thanks to Sir John Coode's new 
harbour ; and capital judiciously invested in tea and 
cacao culture especially, is as likely to bring a good return 
as any agricultural enterprize I know of anywhere.*' 
Such is Mr. Ferguson's summing-up of England's prin- 
cipal tropical colony. He is inclined, it will be seen, to 
take an optimistic view of Ceylon and its future, but he 
speaks with the accumulated experiences of twenty-three 
years' residence in the colony. Then he has the numerous 
correspondents of his papers, the Ceylon Observer and the 
Tropical Af/rindtnri.^t, scattered all over the tropical world 
where English planters are at work ; some reporting on 



England* s Chief Tropical Colony. 329 

tea in Assam; on planting prospects in Java and Fiji; 
on the Liberian coffee in West Africa ; and on planting 
in Brazil ; while he himself has just been making the all- 
round-the-world trip, visiting California and Florida en 
route. ** Nowhere is tropical agriculture so thoroughly 
studied and experimented on as in Ceylon." 

YouNO Men Wanted. — ** We now ask for young fellows 
of the right sort — even pubHc schoolmen, university men 
— any one with pluck and energy who comes determined 
to fight his way against all odds. Do not mistake me. 
We do not want to be flooded out by thriftless never-do- 
weels, who have failed at everything they have turned 
their hands to, but resolute chaps with a little capital to 
invest, though they must first serve an arduous apprentice- 
ship, for there is no royal road to tea-planting. No young 
fellow should come out without some money and letters of 
introduction to planters or merchants. A tropical country 
is very different in its conditions from Australia and New 
Zealand, where a man can turn to at once. Let us sup- 
pose our model young man landed at Colombo and dis- 
patched to a station to serve his novitiate. In some cases 
he might have to pay from £60 to JBIOO a year for his 
board and training, but if he shows any aptitude for his 
work and is a willing horse, he would well repay his cost 
for food and shelter." 

The Fungus Scourge. — " The story of the coffee blight 
is soon told. A few years ago, coffee alone was seen over 
hundreds of square miles of hillside and valley, eastward, 
south, and north of Adam's Peak. Then in 1869 the fun- 
gus appeared, and year after year it did its deadly work, 
and half ruined us. Here are some figures which put the 
matter in a nutshell. Take the coffee production from 
1847 to 1883 now. You have in 1847 an acreage of 45,000, 
with an export of 200,000 hundredweight ; in 1867—86,000 
acres, and 460,000 hundredweight ; in 1867—168.000 acres 
and 868,000 hundredweight ; in 1877—272,000 acres, and 
926,000 hundredweight ; in 1883—174,000 acres, and 
265,000 hundredweight ; whilst 1884 is expected to give 
from 800,000 to 860,000 hundredweight. I think we may 
fairly say that the point of depression has been turned, if 
the estimate proves anything like correct.'* 

Tea will Save us. — ** What happened after the coffee 
blight became serious ? " ** Why, naturally enough, many 



880 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year* 

of the plantations were deserted, the capitalists took fright, 
superintendents were thrown out of employment, and set 
off to other countries. There was a regular migration to 
Northern AustraUa, Fiji, Borneo, the Straits, California, 
Florida, Burmah, and elsewhere. I should say that out of 
our 1,700 planters we lost at least 400 in this way. In 
Northern Australia, at Port Darwin, three or four of our 
Ceylon planters have planted coffee and cinchona ; in 
Califomia some are busy with vines and oranges. Some 
have gone to Florida among the orange groves ; but a 
Florida orange grove requires twenty years to come to full 
maturity, though the trees begin to bear long before that, 
say in six years. There is a ready market in America for 
the fruit, but a man requires to work hard there and to 
know his business before his speculation is hkely to prove 
remunerative. But in Ceylon our indomitable planters, 
who stuck to their posts, began to turn their attention to 
other products — ^tea, cinchona, rubber, cacao ; some 175,000 
acres of coffee being still under cultivation. Many of the 
coffee planters ran belts of rubber trees and cinchona 
between his coffee bushes, thus helping to check the spread 
of the dread coffee fungus. I think the statistics show 
that the scourge is abating ; but whatever comes of coffee, 
Ceylon will become a great tea -growing country within the 
next few years. When the 35,000 acres of land now under 
tea come into full bearing, in three or four years we expect 
to export ten million pounds. Some day Ceylon will have 
150,000 acres under tea, and an annual export of sixty 
million pounds and upwards. Home capitahsts have only 
to say the word. From 482 pounds of tea exported in 
1875-6, the amount in 1882-3 reached a million and a half 
pounds. The yield of cacao for this year is likely to reach 
10,000 cwt. Last season we exported 7,000,000 pounds of 
cinchona bark, this year it will be 11,000,000; while of 
cinnamon and palm tree products (grown chiefly by 
natives) we ship nearly a million sterling's worth. The 
Sinhalese and Tamils are quite ready to follow the Euro- 
pean planters in reference to the new products of late years 
being introduced into Ceylon. They have planted the 
cinchona, cacao, and rubber trees ; but specially are the 
Sinhalese likely to become extensive growers of the tea 
plant." 

The Land and the Climate. — ** Now is the time to buy 



England* s Chief Tropical Colony. 881 

land, for we are on the torn after years of depression, and 
such land as you can now buy for 16s. an acre, may in a 
year or two be doubled or trebled in price. Just as was 
the case in the years between 1868 and 1875, when every 
one was ' going into coffee,' and forest land sold for dB20 
an acre in some districts. Since 1888 some 1,800,000 
acres of Crown lands have been sold (to Europeans and 
natives), at an average price from 1888 to 1844 of 10s. 
8d. ; from 1844 to 1888 the average has been 85s. ; and the 
upset price now is 168. There is no land tax, except 
within the areas of the towns." ** And what about the 
climate ?" '* Delightful — for the tropics most healthy, and 
not much hotter than it has been in London during the 
past few weeks, even at our hottest on the hills. Most of 
the planters and their assistants enjoy the best of health, 
though of course pioneers and those who have to work 
through new forest and in the low country, often suffer 
from malarious fevers. But then have you not the cool 
mountain station to fiiy to as a restorer ? There is Nuwara 
Eliya and Bandarawela, on the plateau of Uva Principality, 
where you get coolness, with health-laden breezes — and I 
have even broken the ice in my water jug, in a Nuwara 
Eliya cottage. Given a change now and then, good food, 
care, and temperance — a European is as well off as regards 
climate (some might say better) than at home here." 

Fbee Laboub. — '' One of our greatest advantages is 
' Free labour.' Close at our shores are the twelve million 
coolies of Southern India, whose average earnings are be- 
tween £S and dB4 a year each. Yes, and he is able to live 
on it, too, and to support a wife and family. From this 
vast source we draw our supply of labourers, and fine well- 
trained, diligent fellows they become. They come over 
with perhaps a wife and three or four children ; they are 
engaged for a period, a month's notice sufficing to terminate 
the contract on either side. There is a hut ready for them, 
with a bit of ground for a garden, in which they grow 
vegetables and so on ; the planter gives them a blanket 
and food until they are able to repay him out of their earn- 
ings. Their wages average from ninepence to a shilling a 
day for a man ; a woman can make about 7d., and a 
child 5d., so they are well off; they save money, and when 
they go back to their own village in a year or two's time, 
they have probably some five or six pounds in their pouch. 



882 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

This the careful coolie invests in a piece of land, which, 
on his return to the Ceylon plantations, he leaves in charge 
of a relative or a friend until he goes home again. Our 
Kandyans, or highlanders, are splendid axemen, and it is 
they who do the felling of our forests and the clearing of 
the land ready for planting. Then the South Indian 
coolies do the digging and planting. The land, hy the way, 
lies generally on timbered slopes. The axemen begin at 
the bottom, cut each tree half through, and work up to 
the top. The highest fringe is cut clean through, and 
with its weight brings down the rest of the slope in the fall. 
The Sinhalese themselves refuse to do any agricultural 
work for Europeans. It is beneath them. They are our 
carters, employed in taking the tea and coffee, and so on, 
from the stations to the coasts If I remember rightly 
there were some 18,000 licensed carts a year or two ago. 
The Sinhalese are also our boatmen and artisans and 
domestic servants. Now many of our Sinhalese and Tamils 
are wealthy. One, indeed, is the richest man on the island, 
with an income of some dB20,000 a year or more. Somn 
of the coolies, I must confess, are sad thieves. You may 
of a Sunday meet a man and his wife on the road, one of 
them carrying a cock, the other a hen. The birds are 
all their portable property, which they are compelled to 
take with them while visiting some friends, lest they should 
be stolen." 

Ceylon Eailways. — " The cost of the Colombo and 
Kandy Eailway, of 74 miles, was d61,740,000. Then an 
extension to Nawalapitiya from Peradeniya, 17 miles, was 
opened in 1874 ; and an extension from Kandy to Matale, 
17^ miles, in 1880. Besides these, a seaside line has been 
constructed from Colombo to Kalutara, 27^ miles. In 
August, 1880, the first sod was turned of an extension 
from Nawalapitiya for 42 miles to Upper Dimbula, whence 
it was intended to be carried 25 miles farther to Haputale. 
Altogether about 180 miles of railway, all on the 5^ ft. 
gauge, have been opened, or are under construction. But 
there is one grievance which I should like to point out 
concerning these railways. The length of forty- two miles 
from Nawalapitiya to Upper Dimbula will probably be 
opened in May, having cost £900,000 of money. But then 
they are going to stop short instead of pushing on as was 
proposed to Haputale, the real terminus, with new traffic, 



England^ 8 Chief Tropical Colony, 333 

which is only 24 miles farther, and would «cost Jg400,000, 
and open up a vast amount of splendid country, which at 
present is compelled to send its produce round by road, a 
distance of 200 miles — a road which is subjected to floods, 
too, to say nothing of the delay and cost." 

The Tea Plantkb at Wobe. — " Let us suppose that a 
young man has learned his business, and has a thousand 
or two of capital He buys 200 acres at 16s. an acre. He 
would begin by opening up, say, twenty-flve acres his 
first year, clearing, draining, and planting. Then, in 
his second year, he would prepare another twenty-flve 
acres. Up to and including the third year his outlay 
would be about Jg20 to £25 an acre. In his third year 
there would be a crop of tea-leaf — a small one. In the 
fourth and fifth year he might expect, supposing that he is 
lucky, to have a crop of tea of 400 lb., to the acre, which 
he would lay down in England at 9d. a pound., which 
would produce in the market from Is. dd. to Is. 6d. a lb., 
thus leaving a margin of 6d. profit. Then he would ad- 
vance, not laying out too much capital to start with, but 
gradually feeling his way. All the year round tea requires 
one man per acre, in crop time a fuller force. It is hard 
physical work, though there may be no absolute manual 
labour. At five in the morning the bugle sounds for all 
hands, the planter comes down to the muster, the coolies 
go off to their work, the master has his coffee and follows 
them, going on foot of course, from point to point, super- 
vising and directing, and at 11 a.m. he returns to his 
breakfast. Until 8 p.m. he remains indoors, attending to 
business matters, then going out again for another spell of 
work and inspection. And so the days pass.'' '' Snakes ? " 
'* Boots and clothing are a great protection against snakes, 
and during the last sixty years I don't think there has 
been one case of death among the whites. The natives, of 
course, have no protection from clothing, and are more 
careless. In Ceylon our coffee machinery for pulpiug, for 
skinning, for drying, has been brought to a state of per- 
fection, and the machines manufactured at Colombo are 
known throughout the tropics. It is this attention to im- 
provements that has helped us so materially. Our planters 
are men with ideas, which they are quick to put iuto force. 
8o it is with the new industries — tea, cinchona, cacao — 
the machinery for their preparation is being improved every 



884 Ceylon in the Jvbilee Year. 

day. Yon see Ceylon is a oomparatively small eonntry, 
and the planters are able to compare notes. A hears how 
B is doing this, he tells it to C, they have a talk about it, 
and so the matter grows. Each district has its little 
centre (not to mention the health resorts on the hills), 
where there is a club and other facilities for the intercom- 
munication of ideas." 

The Ways of the Heathen GmNEE. — " On my way 
from Singapore to China I fell in with a Sumatran to- 
bacco planter who had imported Chinese coolies at a cost 
of £1 to JglO a head, on an engagement of a number of 
years. Smallpox broke out among them. Now a China- 
man prefers death to disfigurement ; he has no notion of 
revolving through endless cycles with a pitted face, so they 
took to suicide, and every morning the overseer came in 
with his report : — * Another ten to thirty pounds gone, sir. 
One to three more of 'em found hanging to a tree just now.' 
This was a serious difficulty. So at last the planter issued 
a proclamation to the effect that the body of the next hung 
Chinaman, instead of being carefully coffined, would be 
cut into pieces. This device stopped suicide. Another 
curious fact respecting the peculiarities of the Chinese is 
worth mentioning. When a Chinaman signs articles on 
board ship one of them is that if he dies on the passage his 
body shall be embalmed and sent back to China. In the 
steamer between Yokohama and San Francisco, one of our 
stokers met with an accident. The doctor said the only 
chance for him was to cut off his leg. ' No, no,' said the 
stoker, and ' No, no,' chorused his comrades. But in a 
day or two mortification set in, and the leg was sacrificed. 
The man died, and his friends were horribly savage at the 
desecration wrought by the doctor's knife and saw. But 
they made the best of it and embalmed the mortified leg 
with the dead body of poor John. The Chinese in the 
Straits earn, if they are good workmen, about 4s. a day. 
Perhaps, we have three Chinamen all told in Ceylon, but 
it is curious to notice that after four days' steaming from 
Colombo to Singapore you are virtually in China, for the 
Chinamen are|gradually filling the Straits up. Of course 
there is much to be said on both sides — but the Califomians, 
so far as I saw, miss their Chinese servants sadly — in fact, 
a Chinaman is at a premium. In my opinion the time had 
not come in Western America to stop Chinese immigra- 



England^ 8 Chief Tropical Colony, 835 

tion. At present only traders are allowed to enter the 
country, though for every Chinese coolie who dies one is 
allowed to take his place. A big business is done in cer- 
tificates from all I can hear. Why, I heard that one of 
the most violent of the anti-Chinese agitators still kept to 
his Chinese servants. He is not a true patriot, like the 
Englishman who refilsed to eat slave-grown sugar. Some 
two or three years ago a Queensland planter engaged 600 of 
our Sinhalese to go to his sugar plantations. They went, 
much to our surprise, for such a thing as Sinhalese emigra- 
tion was unknown. They proved a bad bargain, for they 
were nearly all selected from gaol-birds of the worst type. 
Few of them ever found their way to the plantations, many 
were absorbed in the towns, whilst a few found their way 
back home." 

An Opening for English Girls. — ** There is just one 
word of advice I should like to give to fathers and brothers. 
To the latter, if you go to Ceylon or India — or to any other 
colony, for the matter of that — arrange after you have a 
house of your own to get your sister out with you. 
England is overstocked with women, who are clamouring 
for work and votes and husbands, too. Now England is 
sending out some of her best blood to its distant posses^ 
sions. Why should the young men go and not the young 
women ? I am convinced that the presence of his sister^ 
would have saved many a young fellow, in the pioneering 
days in the tropics, from drink and ruin, if she had been 
there to look after his bungalow and minister to his wants. 
Fellows used to come in from a hard day's work on the 
mountain slopes, fagged and weary, to their bungalow. 
There was food for them prepared by native servants, but 
it was often not fit to eat. So some went to the beer or 
brandy for consolation. Things are better now, and ladies 
more numerous ; but still, in colonizing, whether to 
tropical or temperate climes, sister and brother may well 
go out together. But there is no need for me to expatiate 
on the advantages of my proposal.'* 

""Viliat do you think of the prospects of the North 
Borneo Company ? " I asked Mr. Ferguson, as he rose to 
go. "I cannot say from actual experience, but we have 
one or two correspondents there from whom we hear now 
and then. It took Ceylon seventeen hard years of pioneer- 
ing before we began to think that success would be perma- 



836 Ceylon in the Jxibilee Year. 

nent, and North Borneo is yet a very young country. There 
are at present a few plantations of tea, coffee, and cinchona 
scattered along the coast, while collectors are at work in 
the interior gathering ivory and minerals. It is like other 
new colonies — it needs capital and men.*' 

Kxw Gabdens. — '* I cannot, by the way, over-estimate 
the value of the work which Sir Joseph Hooker and £ew 
Gardens do for us, not only for Ceylon, but for all the 
tropical countries wherein fresh products are being tried. 
The Kew authorities have correspondents and collectors in 
all parts, and if any one wishes te try experiments he has 
only to write to Kew for advice and specimens, which are 
forwarded to him from the gardens. You might think that 
it would be easier for us to send to the country where the 
plant or fruit was indigenous rather than to England, but 
the difficulties would often prove too great. £ew is of 
vast service to the planters in many respects." '* The 
military force," said Mr. Ferguson, in conclusion, <* situated 
in Ceylon, costs us JS 120,000 a year, or 10 per cent, of our 
revenua* Now why should we be compelled to expend 
this sum on British troops we don't want. It is a serious 
grievance. You use Ceylon as a convenient centre, from 
which you may draw in case of any little war in India, in 
China, in New Zealand, in South Africa, or Egypt I do 
not think it fair to impose this burden upon us." 

* This burden has since been greatly reduced, very much through 
the influence of (Governor Sir Arthur Gordon. In some other parts of 
The Pall Mall report of this interview I liave made corrections where 
my remarks were slightly misunderstood. — J. P. 



APPENDIX X. 



" THE SHADOW OF THE PEAK." 

{Inserted by permission from ** The PldlosopMcal Magazine " 

for January f 1887). 

THE PECULIAR SUNBISE-SHADOWS OF ADAM^S PEAK IN CEYLON. 
BY THE HON. RALPH ABERCROMBY, F.R. MET. SOC* 

There are certain peculiarities about the shadows of 
Adam's Peak which have long attracted the attention of 
travellers ; a good deal has been written about them, and 
several theories have been proposed to explain the observed 
phenomena. In the course of a meteorological tour round 
the world the author stopped in Ceylon for the express 
purpose of visiting the Peak, and was fortunate enough to 
see the shadow under circumstances which could leave no 
doubt as to the true explanation, and which also entirely 
disproved certain theories which have been propounded on 
the subject. 

The following account is taken from a paper by the 
Eev. E. Abbay, many years resident in the island, entitled, 
** Eemarkable Atmospheric Phenomena in Ceylon," which 
was read before the Physical Society of London, May 27th, 
1876, and published in Tlw Philosophical Magazine for 
July, 1876. Writing from descriptions, for he himself 
had never witnessed the appearance, Mr. Abbay says : — 
"At sunrise apparently an enormous elongated shadow of 
the mountain is projected to the westward, not only over 
the land but over the sea, to a distance of seventy or eighty 
miles. As the sun rises higher, the shadow rapidly ap- 

* Bead before the Physical Society on November 13th, 18S6, 

23 



838 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

proacbes the mountain, and appears at the same time to 
rise before the spectator in the form of a gigantic pyramid. 
Distant objects — a hill or a river (or even Colombo itself, 
at a distance of forty-five miles)— may be distinctly seen 
through it ; so that the shadow is not really a shadow on 
the land, but a veil of darkness suspended between the 
observer and the low country. All this time it is rapidly 
rising and approaching, and each instant becoming more 
distinct, untU suddenly it seems to fall back on the spec- 
tator, like a ladder that has been reared beyond the 
vertical ; and the next instant the appearance is gone. 
For this the following explanation is proposed: — The 
average temperature at night in the low country during 
the dry season is between 70^ and 80^ E., whilst that on 
the summit of the Peak is from 80° to 40*. Consequently 
the lower strata of air are much less dense than the 
upper ; and an almost horizontal ray of light passing over 
the summit must of necessity be refracted upwards and 
suffer total internal reflection as in the case of an ordinary 
mirage." 

It will be remarked that Mr. Abbay does not allow for 
the difference of elevation, and the sequel will show that 
this theory cannot be maintained. 

Adam's Peak is a mountain that rises in an abrupt cone, 
more than 1,000 feet above the irregular chain to which 
it belongs ; the summit reaches to 7,852 feet above the 
sea. On the south side the mountain falls suddenly down 
to Eatnapura, very little above the sea-level ; while on the 
north it slopes irregularly to the high valley of the Maske- 
liya district. The peak also lies near an elbow in the 
main chain of mountains, as shown in the diagram of the 
topography of the Peak (fig. 1), while a gorge runs up 
from the north-east just to the west of the mountain. 
When, then, the north-east monsoon blows morning mist 
up the valley, light wreaths of condensed vapour will pass 
to the west of the Peak and catch the shadow at sunrise 
only, if other things are suitable. The importance of this 
will appear later on. 

The only difficulty in getting to Adam's Peak is the 
want of a rest-house within reasonable distance of the 
summit. Fortunately the kindness and hospitality of T. 
N. Christie, Esq., of St. Andrew's plantation, Maskeliya, 
enabled the author, in company with Mr. G. Christie and 



" The Shcdow of the Peak:' 



839 



Monsoon 






Professor Bower, of the University of Glasgow, to make 
the ascent with great comfort and with a few necessary 
instruments. Our party reached the summit on the night 
of the 2l8t February, 1886, amid rain, mist, and wind. 
Towards morning the latter subsided, but at 6*80 a.m. the 
sky was covered with a confused mass of nearly every 
variety of cloud. Below and around us cuiiiulus and 
mist; at a higher level, pure stratus; above that, wild 
cirro-stratus and fleecy cirro-cumulus. 

Soon the foreglow began to brighten the under surface 
of the stratus-cloud with orange; hghtning flickered to 
the right of the 
rising sun over a 
dense mass of 
cloud ; opposite, a 
light pink-purple 
illumined an ir- 
regular layer of 
condensed vapour; 

whileabove,apale Adam's Peaki 
moon, with a large 
ill-defined corona 
round her, strug- 
gled to break 
through a softish 
mass of fleecy 
cloud. Below lay 
the island of Cey- 
lon, the hills and 
valleys presenting 
the appearance of 
a raised relief-map ; patches of white mist fill the hollows ; 
true cloud drove at intervals across the country, and some- 
times masses of mist coming up from the valley enveloped 
us with condensed vapour. 

At 6 a.m. the thermometer marked 52° F. ; we had been 
told that the phenomenon of the shadow depended on the 
temperature at the summit falling to 30° or 40° F. ; and 
when, shortly after, the sun rose behind a cloud, we had 
almost lost all hope of seeing anything ; but suddenly at 
6.80 a.m. the sun peeped through a chink in the clouds, 
and we saw the pointed shadow of the peak lying on the 
misty land. Driving condensed vapour was floating about, 




pig. 1. — diagram op the topogbaphy op 
Adam's peak. 



840 



Ceylon in the Jtihilee Year. 



and a fragment of rainbow-tinted mist appeared near the 
top of the shadow. Soon this fragment grew into a com- 
plete prismatic circle of about 8^ diameter by estimation, 
with the red outside formed round the summit of the Peak 
as a centre. The author instantly saw that with this bow 
there ought to be spectral figures, so he waved his arms 
about and immediately found shadowy arms moving in 
the tentre of the rainbow. Two dark rays shot upwards 
and outwards on either side of the centre, as shown in the 
Diagram, fig. 2, and appeared to be nearly in a prolongation 

of the lines of the slope of 
the Peak below. The centre 
of the bow appeared to be 
just below the point of the 
shadow, not on it; because 
we were standing on a plat- 
form below a pointed shrine, 
and the subjective bow 
centred from our own eyes. 
If we did not stand fairly out 
in the sun, only a portion of 
the bow could be seen. 
Three times, within a quar- 
Grey ter of an hour, this appear- 
ance was repeated as mist 
drove up in proper quantities, 
and fitful glimpses of the 
sun gave a sufficient light 
to throw a shadow and form 
a bow. In every case the 
shadow and bow were seen 
in front of land and never 
against the sky. The last 
time, when the sun was pretty high, we saw the charac- 
teristic peculiarity of the shadow. As a thin wreath of 
condensed vapour came up from the valley at a proper 
height a bow formed round the shadow, while both 
seemed to stand up in front of us, and then the shadow 
fell down on to the land, and the bow vanished as the 
mist passed on. 

Here, then, was an unequivocal explanation of the whole 
phenomenon. The apparent upstanding of the shadow 
was simply the effect of passing mist which caught the 




FIG. 2. — DIAGRAM OT RAINBOW 
ROUND THE SHADOW. 



" The Shadow of the Peak:' 841 

darkness of the Peak at a higher level than the earth, fol: 
when the condensed vapour moved on the characteristic 
bow disappeared, and the shadow fell to its natural plane 
on the ground. When the mist was low, as on the two 
first occasions, the shadow fell on the top as it were, and 
there was no appearance of lifting, only the formation of a 
bow. 

The well-known theory of the bow is that light diflfraoted 
in its passage between small water-globules forms a series 
of bows according to the size of the globules, their close- 
ness, and the intensity of the illumination. Had the mist 
been so fine and thin as merely to catch and raise the 
shadow, but not to form a bow, there might have been 
some doubt as to the origin of the appearance. Our for- 
tune was in the unsettled weather which made the mist 
80 coarse and close that the unequivocal bow left no doubt 
as to the true nature of the cause. 

About an hour later the sun again shone out, but much 
higher and stronger than before, and then we saw a 
brighter and sharper shadow of the Peak, this time en- 
circled by a double bow. Our own spectral arms were 
again visible, but the shadow was now so much nearer 
the base of the Peak, and we had to look so much down 
on it that there was no illusion of standing up, and there 
were no dark diverging rays. The inner bow was the one 
we had seen before ; the outer and fainter one was due to 
stronger light. 

The bows were all so feeble and the time so short that 
the author did not succeed in obtaining any sextant 
measurements of the diameters of the bows ; but his 
thermometric observations conclusively disprove any idea 
of mirage. At 6 a.m. the thermometer on the Peak 
marked 52"^ F., while at Colombo the temperature stood 
at 74°-85. The difference of 22°-85 is just about the 
normal difference in temperature due to a height of 7,352 
feet. 

The Colombo figures were procured through the courtesy 
of the Surveyor-General for Ceylon. They are got as 
follows : — Colombo observations only give the minimum 
that morning as 73°-6 F. and the 7 a.m. reading as 75°*5. 
The mean curve of diurnal temperature for the month of 
February, as determined by the Office, gives a difference 
of 0°'65 between the 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. observations ; and 



842 Ceylon in the JiMlee Year. 

by subtracting that correction from 75°* 5 we get 74<"85 as 
the 6 a.m. reading. 

The questions have been frequently asked — Why this 
lifted shadow should be peculiar to Adam's Peak ? why a 
similar appearance is not observed from any other moun- 
tain top ? and why the shadow is rarely seen at sunset ? 
There are not many mountains which are habitually 
visited that are either over 7,000 feet, or that rise in an 
isolated, well-defined pyramid. Still fewer can there be 
where a steady wind, for months together, blows up a 
valley so as to project the rising morning mist at a suit- 
able height and distance on the western side to catch the 
shadow of the peak at sunrise. The shadow is hot seen 
during the south-west monsoon, for then the mountain is 
covered with cloud and deserted. Nowhere either do we 
find at sunset those light mists lying near the ground 
which are so characteristic of sunrise, and whose presence 
is necessary to lift the shadow. 

The combination of a high isolated pyramid, a prevailing 
wind, and a valley to direct suitable mist at a proper 
height on the western side of the mountain, is probably 
only rarely met with ; and at present nothing yet has been 
described that exactly resembles this sunrise shadow of 
Adam's Peak in the green island of Ceylon. 

But there is anotiier totally different shadow which is 
sometimes seen from Adam's Peak, just before and at the 
moment of sunrise, that has been mixed up in some 
accounts with the shadow we have just described. The 
shadow of the base of the Peak stretches along the land 
to the horizon, and then the shadow of the summit appears 
to rise up and stand against the distant sky. The first 
part seems to be the natural shadow lying on the ground ; 
and the sky part to be simply the ordinary earth shadow 
of twilight projected so clearly against the sky as to show 
mountainous irregularities of the earth's surface. As the 
sun rises the shadow of the summit against the sky gradu- 
ally sinks to the horizon, and then the ordinary shadow 
grows steadily shorter as the sun gets higher in the usual 
manner. This can only be seen at sunrise from Adam's 
Peak, because the ground to the east is too high and 
mountainous to allow the shadow of the summit to fall on 
the sky before the sun is too far down. 

The author found a similar effect, only at sunset, on 



" The Shadow of the Peak:' 343 

Fike*s Peak, Colorado, 14,147 feet above the sea, and 
nearly double the height of Adam's Peak. There, towards 
sunset, the shadow of the mountain creeps along the level 
prairie to the horizon, and there begins to rise up in the 
sky till the sun has just gone down, and the anticrepus- 
cular shadow rises too high to catch the outline of the 
Peak. The author only witnessed a portion of this 
sequence, for just about the time that the shadow 
stretched to the horizon clouds obscured the sun, and the 
rise of the shadow could not be observed ; but from all the 
descriptions he heard there can be no doubt that the 
character of the shadow is identical with that of Adam's 
Peak, only that, as the order of sequence is reversed, it is 
more easy to follow the origin of the shadows. 

Since the above was written the author's attention has 
been called to the sketch of the shadow exhibited by the 
well-known traveller, Miss 0. F. Gordon Gumming, in the 
Golonial Exhibition. This picture represents the shadow 
lying down, but not raised, on an irregular surface of 
white mist and mountain tops. The most interesting 
thing is a prismatic fringe of colour along the straight 
outside edges of the shadow ; but there is no trace of a 
bow round its point. 

When we consider how much the appearance of the 
shadow depends on the height, size, and aggregation of 
the mist we need not be surprised at the numerous phases 
of reflection and refraction that have been described by 
travellers; but the general principles which have been 
laid down in this paper appear to govern all. 



[Since the above was written, the Bev. B. Abbay has 
cojae forward to dispute some of the conclusions arrived 
at by Mr. Abercromby, and, indeed, to controvert his 
main contention. — J. F.] 



APPENDIX XII. 

TEA IN CEYLON. 

The following useful infonnation was prepared by The 
iPiANTERs' Association op Ceylon, and circulated at 
the late Indian and Colonial Exhibition at South Ken- 
sington in 1886. 

In the minds of the British public the name of Ceylon 
has been chiefly associated with the production of coffee 
and spices ; the latter in poetry, but in poetry only, im- 
parting their fragrance to the very air. 

While Ceylon coffee and Ceylon spices are of superior 
quality and remain most important articles of trade, it is 
Ceylon tea that is rapidly becoming the staple product, 
and the one for which the island will soon be most cele- 
brated. 

Seldom or never has an industry made such progress, or 
a new article of consumption overcome by its intrinsic 
merit the opposition of vested trade interests as has 
Cevlon tea. 

In 1878 the exports of tea from Ceylon were 28lbs. ; in 
1885, they have been 4^ million lbs. ; in 1886 they will 
be about 10 million lbs.; and in the near future 40 miUion 
lbs. will be exported. 

The area under tea in the island is rapidly extending, 
and already about 120,000 acres have been planted. Over 
700 European planters and 160,000 Indian and Sinhalese 
labourers are engaged in the cultivation. Some of the 
plantations are but little above sea level, while others run 
up to an elevation of 6,000 feet. The average altitude 
of the larger districts is about 4,000 feet above sea level. 



Tea in Ceylon. 846 

an eleTatioQ at wliicb the climate is pleasaikt and moet 
liealthy. A railway rons up into the hilla and a good 
Bystem of cart roads exists, so that most of the estates are 
already within a day's journey from Colombo— the capital 
and shipping port. 

At a time when dietetics has almost become a science, 
irben purity and cleanliness in food and beverages are so 




COOLIE Oaa. PICIIKO TKA-I,IIjITBS. 

strongly insisted on, it is strange that greater attention 
has not been called to the more than doubtful natore 
of much of that which is ooneumed as tea. 

It has been said that, if to be an Englishman is to eat 
beef, to be an Englishwoman is to drink tea. Tme it is 
that the article which in the sixteenth century was a 
luxury, costing tea guineas a pound and consumed by 



846 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

a hundred people, has in the nineteenth century become a 
necessity, costing two shillings a pound and consumed by 
millions. 

Did the people of Britain thoroughly understand the 
difference between British-grown tea — such as Ceylon's — 
and that of China or Japan, it is certain that those who 
could get the pure, clean, machine- prepared leaf which is 
turned out from the planter's factory, would never touch 
the far from pure article prepared by the hands and feet 
of the unwashed Mongolian. 

In China and Japan tea is mostly cultivated in small 
patches by the peasantry, who gather the leaves and pre- 
pare the tea in their huts in a very unfastidious manner. 
The tea, either in a half-manufactured or finished state, is 
sold to petty dealers, who in turn sell to larger dealers. 

The large dealer mixes and manipulates teas, packs and 
sells them to the European merchants for shipment to 
England, Australia, or America. The manipulation of tea 
is an art in which the Chinaman excels, and in many of the 
inferior kindd the quality is infinitely deteriorated — thus, 
'' the dust of the leaf is mixed with clay and manipulated 
into the form of the ordinary leaf " — ^this is with appro- 
priate philological coincidence termed'** lie '* tea. ** Tea 
leaves which have been already used are again manipulated 
and rolled into shape and sold as genuine tea.*' 

The teas of Japan, which are almost entirely consumed 
by our American cousins, are frequently and admittedly 
** faced ** with a mixture of Prussian blue and soapstone. 

The Ceylon estate cultivation and manufacture is very 
different, and it may not be uninteresting to give a brief 
account of how pure tea is made. Visitors to the Ceylon 
Court in the Colonial and Indian Exhibition will find an 
interesting series of photographs from life, attached to the 
exhibits of tea, illustrating the various operations. 

The tea bushes are planted in lines at regular distances 
over hundreds of acres of carefully roaded and drained 
land, which is regularly weeded every month. Once a year 
the bushes are pruned down to a height of about two feet ; 
and eight weeks after the pruning the first ** flush*' of 
young shoots is ready to be plucked, and during the height 
of the season the flushes re-occur every ten days. Coolies, 
having a small basket attached to their girdle, then go 
round and pluck the bud and a couple of the tender half- 



Tea in Ceylon. 847 

developed leaves. At mid-day, and again in the eveuiDg, 




the leaf is weighed and taken into tlie 



848 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

is at once spread very thinly on trays or shelves to wither. 
The time which the leaf takes to wither — to become soft 
and pliable without drying up — varies with the weather, 
but as a rule the leaf gathered one day will be sufficiently 
withered the following day. 

The withered leaf is then placed in the rolling-machine, 
an ingenious and effective machine which is driven by 
water or steam power. The rolling lasts for nearly half- 
an-hour, at the end of that time the leaf has become a 
moist mass of twisted and bruised leaves, out of which 
the expressed juice freely comes, technically called '' the 
roll." The roll is then placed in trays to ferment or 
oxidise; during this process it changes from a green to 
a copper colour. The subsequent strength and flavour of 
the tea depend, to a great extent, upon the fermentation — 
a chemical process, the success of which is not entirely 
within the control of the planter, but depends greatly 
on the weather, and takes a time varying from two to six 
hours. 

The next process is that of firing. The roll is thinly 
spread on trays, and placed either over charcoal stoves or 
in large iron drying-machines, and at the end of half-an- 
hour it is thoroughly crisp and dried, and has become tea. 
The tea is then sorted or sized, by being passed through 
sieves of different meshes (see working model of a tea-sifter 
in the Ceylon Court) giving the varieties of broken-pekoe, 
pekoe, souchong, congou, and dust. The broken-pekoe, 
which consists chiefly of the opening bud of the leaf, gives 
the strongest tea, perhaps too strong a tea to be infused 
by itself ; and a mixture of pekoe and souchong makes the 
most pleasant drinking tea. 

The final process is that of weighing and packing. 
When a sufficient quantity has been manfactured the 
tea is again slightly fired, to drive off any suspicion of 
moisture, and packed while warm in lead-lined boxes 
carefully soldered down to exclude air. 

Such is the mode of careful, cleanly preparation in the 
specially erected factory of the Ceylon planter ; and every 
drinker cff genuine Ceylon tea may be certain that it is 
absolutely pure, 

Ceylon tea stands unrivalled for its combination of 
strength and flavour ; and the pure tea gives a beverage 
pleasant and beneficial to those who drink it. One 



.1 



Tea in Ceylon. 849 

cannot doubt that, were the well-meaning evangelists in 
the cause of temperance to realize the difference between 
pleasantly-strong well-flavoured stimulating tea and the 
•* wishy - washy " decoction infused from the cheaper 
China teas, their efforts to substitute *'the cup which 
does not inebriate " for that which does might be made 
much more successful. 

In addition to the other good qualities, Ceylon tea 
possesses that of being economical ; for it is generally 
admitted that two pounds of Ceylon will go as far as three 
pounds of China. 

The tea you drink should be — 
1. — Pure. 
2. — Wholesome. 
8. — Pleasant. 
4. — Economical. 

And Ceylon tea justly claims pre-eminence on those 
grounds. 

Would-be purchasers of Ceylon tea must be warned 
that there is danger (just as there is with everything 
which has earned a good name and become popular^ of a 
spurious or admixed article being sold instead of wnat is 
genuine. 



APPENDIX XEL 

WORKS OF PUBLIC INTEREST EXECUTED, AND 
ENDOWMENTS MADE, BY THE DE SOYS A 
FAMILY, AND CHIEFLY BY C, H. DE SOYSA, 

Esq, 

Roads. — Cart road from Haragama to Len Oya. Good 
cart road at a point near eleventh mile post on Galle road. 
Good cart road farther north on same road. Good cart 
road tenth mile post at village Angulana. Several roads 
in the Chilaw district. Good cart road in populous villages 
terminating at Mampe. Excellent cart road from Polgas 
Owitte in Salpity Korale crossing village Mattegodde, 
terminating at Delgaha Manatte. The widening and re- 
pairing of many roads in and about Moratuwa. 

Fields and Tanks. — The building of the Malluwawawe 
at Gonagama. Irrigating a large field at Kandevalle, with 
a view to giving employment to the neighbouring destitute 
villagers. 

Ambalams, &o. — A comfortable rest-house for the use of 
the foot passengers at Haragama. An extensive and well- 
kept cemetery at Moratuwa for both strangers and members 
of the congregation. Rest-house at Moratuwa with sepa- 
rate compartments for both sexes. 

Chubohes. — The church at Hanguranketta. A fine 
church at Maravilla. St. John's, Panadura. Holy 
Emmanuel's, Moratuwa. Contributions towards building 
the churches at Negombo and Kurunegala. The Pana- 
dura burial ground, which was hable to inundations, was 
raised at a large cost. 

Hospitals. — Building of the Hospital at Maravilla. 



Works of Public Interest Executed. 861 

The De Soysa Mnsenm and the Lying-in Home at Colombo. 
Panadura Hospital. 

Schools. — Schools at Eoralawelle ; Prince and Princess 
of Wales' Colleges, costing Bs.150,000. Donation, 
Bs.80,000 to Si Thomas' College ; donation to the Ja&a 
College. 

Public Beceptions. — Beception to the Duke of Edin- 
burgh, costing £10,000. Establishment of *' Alfred Model 
Farm,*' jeiO,000, 

Societies. — The establishment of the Moratuwa Co- 
operative Society for the improvement of people. Estab- 
lishment by Jeronis De Soysa, Mudaliyar, of the Society 
called Satarana Sarana Samagama — the Gansabawa being 
the outcome. 

• Improvements to Town. — By building Port OflSces, 
Cottages, Slave Island Buildings. 

Belief Funds. — Subscription to Belief Funds. 

Translation of Books. — Undertook cost of translating 
Hithopadesa into Sinhalese. 

Houses. — Building two cottages at Mount Lavinia, the 
income of which goes towards the expenses of Emmanuel 
Church. 

Libraries. — Establishment of Library at Moratuwa. 
Besides various other acts in Ceylon, too numerous to 
mention. 

Add to these the £1,000 which Mr. de Soysa handed to 
Sir Arthur Birch, Commissioner for Ceylon at the Indian 
and Colonial Exhibition in September, 1886, for the pur- 
chase of the fittings of the Ceylon Court as a contribution 
to the Imperial Institute, and £500 in cash for these Insti- 
tutions ; and £1,000 given to the London Hospitals as a 
memento of his first visit to England, in November, 1886. 



APPENDIX XIV. 

BENEFACTIONS BY S. D. A. EAJEPAKSE, Esq. 

Entbbtainment. — To the sailors of the men-of-war which 
brought His Eoyal Highness the Prince of Wales to Ceylon : 
K3,000. 

Contribution to the Coloscbo ** Fbiend-in-Need Society." 
— In commemoration of the visit to Ceylon of their Eoyal 
Highnesses, Albert Victor and George, the sons of the 
Prince of Wales : El, 000. 

Contribution to the Colombo ** Friend-in-Nebd Society." 
— To help the Society when it was in want of funds: 
El, 000. 

Eajepakse Prize. — Annaal value, El 00. In connection 
with the Eoyal College, Colombo. 

Eajepakss Prize. — For midwifery, in connection with 
the Medical College, Colombo. Annual value, ElOO. 

Weeresinghe Prize. — To perpetuate the memory of A. 
W. M. Weeresinghe, in connection with St. Thomas's 
College, Colombo. Annual value, ElOO. 

Endowed ** Duke op Edinburgh's Scholarship.** — In 
commemoration of the visits of His Eoyal Highness the 
Duke of Edinburgh to Ceylon ; Principal E8,000 ; in con- 
nection with St. Thomas's College, Colombo. 

Endowed ** Gregory Schola.rship." — In commemoration 
of the eminent services of Sir W. H. Gregory, K.C.M.G., 
as Governor of Ceylon ; Principal, E8,000 ; in connection 
with St. Thomas's College, Colombo. 

Endowed ** Prince of Wales* Exhibitions.*' — In com- 
memoration of the visit of His Eoyal Highness the Prince 
of Wales ; Principal, E10,000 ; in connection with St. 
Thomas's College, Colombo. 



Benefactions hy S. D. A. Rajepakse, Esq. 853 

Contribution to the ** Gregory Statue/' — In com- 
memoration of the administration of the Government in 
Ceylon by Sir W. H. Gregory, K.C.M.G. : K5,000. 

Contribution to tSe " Galle Clock Tower." — Erected 
in commemoration of the eminent services of P. D. 
Anthonisz, Esq., M.D. : E3,500. 

Contribution. — To the relief of the villagers distressed 
by the flood of 1872 : E2,000. 



24 



APPENDIX XV. 



[As a curiosity and of special interest to English readers, 
wo give the following ** Genealogical Tree" of one of Cey- 
lon's worthiest sons and most generous philanthi'opists.] 

GENEALOGICAL TABLE, 

SHOWING THB DESCENT OF S. D. A. BAJEPAESB, MUDALIYAB OF 
BIS excellency's GATE, AND J.P. FOB THE ISLAND. 

B. D. A. Eajepakse,:}: 
Mudaliyar of the 
Grand Eonda. 



A. D. A. Bajepalcse,' 
Maha Vidane, Mu- 
dali jar of Welitara 
District. 



Daughter of Lewis Mendis 
Wickremanaike, Atta- 
patoo Mudahyar of Maha 
Badda. 



A. D. A. Rajepakse, Mndliyarqp Caroline de Soyza Wijey- 
of Mutwal and Welisara sirriwardena. 
Districts. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse, 
Mudaliyar of His Excellency's Gate, and J.P. 

for the Island. 

FUBTHEB PARTICULABS. 



Carlo de Miranda, First Inter- 
preter and Chief Mudaliyar of 
the Maha Badda. 

Solomon de Miranda, First In- 
terpreter and Chief MudaUy^r 
of the Maha Badda. 

E, de Zoysa Eajepakse, Maha 
Vidane Mudaliyar of Maha 
Badda. 

S. de Zoysa Eajepakse, Cappina \ 
Mudaliyar, and Mudaliyar of > 
Calna Modera District. j 



S. D. A. Eajepakse's 

Maternal Grandmother's 
Grandfather. 

Maternal Grandmother's 
Father. 

Maternal Great-grand- 
father. 

Maternal Grandfather. 



Oenealogical Table. 8^5 

GENEALOGICAL TABLE, 

TBAGINO THE DESCENT OF S. D. A. BAJEPAKSE (tHBOUOH BIS 

mother) to oablo db mibanda, fibst intebpbbteb and 
ohief mudalitab of the maha badda. 

Carlo de Miranda, First Literpreter^ 
and Chief Mudaliyar of the Maha 
Badda. 



Solomon de Miranda — ^First Interpreter andqi 
Chief Mudaliyar of the Maha Badda. 



Sasana de Miranda :f Solomon de Sosa Eajepakse, 

Kappina Mudaliyar. 



Caroline^A. D. A. Eajepakse, Mudaliyar of 
I Mutwal and Welisara Districts. 
S. D. A. Eajepakse, Mudaliyar of His Excellency's 
Gate, and J.P. for the Island. 

FUBTHEB PARTICULABS. 

S. D. A. Rajepakse's (Mudaliyar) Mother's Father. — S. 
de Zoysa Eajepakse, Kappina Mudaliyar and Mudaliyar 
of Kalna Modera District. 

S. D. A. Eajapakse's Mother's Grandfather (father's 
father). — E. de Zoysa Eajepakse, Maha Vidane Mudaliyar 
of Maha Badda. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse's Father. — A. D. A. Eajepakse, 
Mudaliyar of Mutwal and Welisara Districts. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse's Grandfather. — A. D. A. Eajepakse, 
Maha Vidane Mudaliyar of Welitara District. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse's Great-grandfather. — ^B. D. A. Eaje- 
pakse, Mudaliyar of Grand Eonda. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse's Paternal Grandmother. — The 
daughter of Lewis Mendis Wickremanaike, Attapatoo 
Mudaliyar of Maha ^^'dda. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse's SCatemal Great-grandfather. — 
E. de Zoysa Eajepakse, Maha Yidane Mudaliyar of Maha 
Badda. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse's Maternal Grandfather. — S. de 
Zoysa Eajepakse, Cappina Mudaliyar, and Mudaliyar of 
Calna Modera Districts. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse's Maternal Grandmother's Father. — ' 



856 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Solomon de Miranda, First Interpreter and Chief Muda- 
liyer of the Maha Badda. 

S. D. A. Eajepakse*s Maternal Grandmother's Grand- 
father. — Carlo de Miranda, First Interpreter and Chief 
Madaliyar of the Maha Ba^da. 



APPENDIX XVI, 

COLOMBO AND THE BUDDHIST TEMPLE AT 

KELANIYA, 

The following lively description by Julian Thomas (" The 
Vagabond ** of the Melbourne Argus), of his two days* visit 
to Colombo, will be read with interest : — 

** The eleventh morning out from Albany, at daylight, 
Point de Galle or Matara is visible. Low shores, then 
rolling foothills, then a high mountain chain towering 
into the clouds ; over all, the peculiar soft olive-blue haze 
which denotes the presence of dense tropical vegetation. 
White mist lies in the valleys, giving the appearance of 
lakes overshadowed by the mountains. I am reminded of 
the Gulf of Darien as I first saw it twenty years ago at 
early mom. Tennent well says that this island, from 
whatever direction it may be approached, 'unfolds a 
scene of loveliness and grandeur unsurpassed, if it be 
rivalled, by any land in the universe.* 

"From the sea, Ceylon appears like the mountain region 
of Otago, New Zealand, planted in the midst of a tropical 
garden. Verily * every prospect pleases * here. Now and 
then in the dense coconut grove one sees glimpses of 
colour in a red-tiled roof or brown thatch. There is a 
heavy population — nearly three millions — in a country 
one-sixth less than the area of Lreland, and a large portion 
of which is covered by mountain ranges. A large number 
live, if not entirely on the water, at least by the products 
of the sea. Fishing catamarans are sailing up and down 
the coast, and we pass many of them lying-to and drawing 
in their nets. The style of boat is known to every school- 
boy. It is nearly the same as the tooga canoe of the South 



858 Ceylon in the Jvhilee Year. 

Seas. The sixty miles coasting voyage between Galle and 
Colombo is altogether one of the most beautiful in the 
world. We see Kalutara at the mouth of a large river. 
A charming settlement this, twenty-seven miles south of 
Colombo, with which it is connected by railway, being 
known as the Eichmond of Ceylon. Twenty miles farther 
on is Mount Lavinia, another popular seaside resort, where 
a monster hotel bids for custom. And now the shore 
becomes, dotted with bungalows, there is a break in the 
palm grove, and Colombo is ahead. A city of high 
buildings, towers, cupolas, red-tiled roofs, open spaces, 
flowering trees, green lawns — a magnificent capital of 
120,000 inhabitants, a mixture of Shanghai and Old 
Panama and Honolulu. Verdure everywhere, colour 
everywhere, life everywhere. We round Sir John Coode's 
Breakwater, and in the harbour are ships of many nations 
— British, French, Italian, and German steamers, an 
English gunboat, and native sailing craft of an infinite 
variety. A brigantine well- sailed passes us. She is of 
English build, but is manned entirely by blacks. Bound 
this to the Eastern Maldives or the coast of India. But 
it is strange to see the children of Ham * running * a vessel 
of their own. The Australian is here brought face to face 
with the fact that there is a civilization other and older 
than his own. Catamarans of all sorts and sizes crowd 
around the vessel. Every variety of Oriental race and 
costume is represented. The light-brown native Sinhalese, 
with their long black hair secured by huge tortoiseshell 
combs, have an effeminate appearance which makes new 
chums mistake all the males for women. The conquering 
Tamils, from Southern India, are darker and more manly. 
There are Hindus of every cast and style of undress — 
* Moormen,' tambies, tall muscular Afghans, Parsees and 
Chinese, swarthy Malays, and Eurasians (fat and oily) of 
Dutch and Portuguese descent. All from the magnifi- 
cently attired dealer in the precious stones of Birmingham 
to the scantily-clad boatmen, appear to have been waiting 
from their creation for the arrival of the Rome to screech 
at us in a babel of tongues ; to rush up the gangway and 
storm us with applications to buy ; to be filled with an 
overpowering desire to take away our washing, or to carry 
us off to the Grand Oriental Hotel or the Galle Face Hotel. 
And as they fight and yell on one side of the ship, there 



Colombo and the Buddhist Temple at Kelaniya, 859 

comes a chorus from the other, * Habbadibe I Habbadibe I ' 
which, being interpreted, means, ' Have a dive/ signifying 
that the hundreds of little rascals, nearly naked, who are 
floating about on pieces of wood, or paddling frog-like in 
the water, are willing to dive for our amusement and their 
own profit after any silver coins we may throw overboard. 
* Good -day, Sahib ; Habbadibe I Habbadibe ! * they shout, 
keeping a sing-song time. A sixpence or a shilling 
dropped into the water sends fifty pairs of legs into the 
air ; for a second the white soles of their feet are seen, 
another second, and arms and heads flash up again, and 
one of the lads shows the coin before pouching it hke a 
monkey. Sometimes a fight takes place, but it is of a 
bloodless character. 

" Colour is the prevailing feature ; a red waist cloth or a 
rag bound round the head, contrasting with the dusky 
skins, has an effect which, en mas^e^ pleases the eye. 
Nothing can make our Australian larrikins beautiful, but 
the meanest Oriental here is picturesque. To our colonial- 
born youth these natives suggest so much. Visions of 
the Arabian Nights are conjured up. Those of us who 
have read the Thousand and One Tales, think of Aladdin 
and Sinbad, of the Old Man of the Sea, and the Hunch 
back of Bagdad, as celebrated in literature as he of Notre 
Dame. Many of us make up our minds to do the Haroun 
al Easchid's trick here, and see what adventure may 
happen to the adventurous. But first to get ashore. I 
let a Moorman, * Abdallah * by name, a runner for the 
Grand Oriental Hotel, take possession of me, and form 
one of a party in a steam launch which for sixpence a head 
lands us on the quay. Two minutes' walk to the hotel. 
I engage a room, and then a carriage, and with Abdallah, 
who professes he knows all the city, I drive around 
Colombo. I have first three well-known men to see and 
interview — Arabi Pasha, Mr. John Ferguson, and Colonel 
Olcott. Ahmad Arabi, Egyptian exile, lives at Elizabeth 
House, Mackenzie Place, in the Cinnamon Gardens. The 
residence is an ordinary bungalow, with no particular 
style about it. The Malay policeman who receives my 
card expresses his doubts as to whether the * Badger,' as 
he pronounces * Pasha,' will see me. But Arabi and 
myself have mutual friends, and I soon have the pleasure 
of shaking hands with him and Yacoob Samy, another 



860 Ceylon in the Jvbilee Year, 

exile. We have cigarettes and coffee, and Arabi, who 
now speaks English fairly well, expresses his pleasure at 
hearing that Colonel J. M. Morgan is United States 
Consul at Melboome. We do not talk politics, and in 
tmth our conversation is hmited. It is very strange to 
think that this quiet-looking gentleman in the fez was five 
years ago master of Egypt. A son of the soil, a fellah^ 
whose kindred are bare-footed tillers of earth, Ahmad 
Arabi is the most remarkable man in his country since the 
days of Mahomet All ' The Wallace of Egypt,' I once 
styled him to an enthusiastic Scotchman in the 'Far 
North ' of South Australia. 

'< I do not think there is a city in the world so beautiful 
in the luxuriant verdure which clothes it as this. As one 
drives about Colombo the botanist has great pleasure in 
noting the trees, the flowers, and the shrubs. One ad- 
mires the graceful waving coconut palms {cocas nucifera), 
the plumes of the betel palm (nreca catechu), of which Dr. 
Hooker wrote — * The cidtivated areca raises its graceful 
head and feathery crown like an arrow shot from heaven 
in luxuriance and beauty above the verdant slopes ; ' and 
the fan beauty of the Travellers* tree {reevenda Madagas- 
carerms). You pass along avenues where Suriya trees 
(thespesia popidnea) cast their shade, with their poplar- 
like foliage and large yellow flowers ; you notice the heart- 
shaped leaves and yellow-pink flowers of the tulip tree, 
often used to line a garden wall or rail Great specimens 
of the pterocarpus indicus spread their shady boughs over- 
head. Now you see your familiar friend, the silky oak 
(Grevillea robusta) lining the roadway with yellow flower- 
heads hiding among the fringe-like leaves. Beside the 
bungalows are AustraUan she-oaks (casiuirifia equisUifolia), 
their height and vigour of growth here being remarkable. 
Banyans with hanging aerial roots stand beside that 
beautiful sight, the Flamboyante, or flame tree {poinciana 
regia), with its large feathery, twice-pinnate leaves and 
bunches of scarlet flowers. There, too, is the sacred Bo 
tree {ficus religiosa) of the Buddhists, whose aspen leaves 
have the midribs prolonged into a tail-like extremity. As 
you listen to the rattling, rustling noise of the leaves 
8haken by the wind, you think of the superstition of the 
Hindus that connects this with the spirits of their departed 
Brahmins. The green foliage is exquisite, and the shade 



Colombo and the Bvddhisi Temple at Kelaniya. 361 

most inviting. Here is the coral tree {erythrina indica), 
bearing triangular leaves and curled combs of scarlet 
flowers on the topmost boughs. You notice the palmate 
foliage and warty bark of the eriodendron anfructuosum. 
The bauhinia purpurea and variegata add their share of 
shade and colour. Among the leaves, shaped into two 
rounded halves, long pods hang at this season. There is 
an airiness and lightness about the great tamarinds 
{tamarindus indicus) ; from the at present bare boughs of 
the silk cotton tree {homhax malabaricum) hang round 
pointed pods just bursting to shower flakes of white down 
over their neighbours. This cotton is used for stuffing 
pillows and mattresses here. A grand tree is the Ceylon 
oak {scherchera Uijugd), so like in general appearance to 
the British oak. Beside it grows the large-leaved carrega 
arhorea^ and overspreading the roadway is the rain tree or 
inga saman (calliandra fuaman), having foliage somewhat 
like the false acacia, and crown-shaped flower heads of 
pink colour. The air is perfumed with the fragrance 
emitted from the white flowers of the frangipanni, that 
with long leaves cluster at the end of the thick naked 
shoots. 

'< Besides all these, cultivated for their beauty and their 
shade, one sees great groves of fruit trees, the jak trees 
(artocarpus mtegrifolia), so much grown by the natives, 
whose huge fruit, hanging from the boughs and trunk, 
varies in weight when ripe between 801b and 501b. The 
pulp containing the albuminous seeds tastes very like a 
banana. Bread-fruit trees (artocarpus incisa), closely allied 
to the above, you notice in the groves, also the plan- 
tain and bananas raise their broad light-green leaves 
among them with clusters of fruit. Many are the mango 
trees (manganifera indica) planted about. A noble tree is 
the wild bread-fruit {artocarpus nobilis), its large vein-fur- 
rowed leaves casting a delightful shade. Most beautiful 
are the gardens — a wealth of colouring, a luxuriance of 
vegetation. There are hedges of aclypha tricolor y whose 
leaves are variegated, yellow, red and brown ; and also 
of aclypha bicolor, tinted green and yellow, with the pea- 
cock flower (poinciana p^dcherrima), and borderings to the 
pathways of feathery aralia Quilfoylii^ called after our 
own botanist. In the shade of the great trees and palms 
around the bungalows grow innumerable species of crotons, 



862 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

mingling their many-tinted leaves, showing aU shades 
between brown, parple, yellow, red and green. Theie, too, 
fioarishes the hibiscns, whose bright, scarlet flowers catch 
your eye. One variety is called the "shoe-flower," 
because you can blacken and polish your boots with its 
crushed petals. You see these plants in the hedge-rows 
mingling with an arborescent sujiiflower {stifflia crynanthd). 
Here, again, are the pninsettUi ptUcherrima, with its bright 
scarlet, calycine leaf-like bracts, and the ever-flowering 
oleander (nerium oleander), A curious specimen is the 
potatoe tree (wlanum macraniha), resembling a great over- 
grown potatoe plant. The exquisite purple of the bougain- 
villea spectabilis overspreads verandahs and arbours, and 
alamandas add their yellow blossoms. Now and then 
you see a spathodea — ^large-leaved, and bearing great red 
flowers. Often you notice the orange vermilion blossoms 
of the West Indian coast bramble {lantana mixta), intro- 
duced by Lady Ward from Australia, and now fast over- 
spreading the waste land of the island. At intervals, 
great clumps of bamboo add their feathery beauty, and 
you even see the castor oil tree (ricinus communis) grown 
in gardens, with occasionally the nutmeg (myristdca 
officinalis). Add to these the cinnamon, and there is such a 
wealth of botany and floral beauty in Colombo as you will 
find nowhere else in the world ; and the most extraordi- 
nary thing is, that all this beautiful and useful vegetation 
has been imported, none of the trees and plants I have 
mentioned being indigenous to Ceylon. But Ceylon is still 
essentially a Buddhist country, the nominal followers of 
this form of faith forming nearly 62 per cent, of the popu- 
lation. The Buddhists are divided into two sections, the 
Siamese and Burmese, and I believe they quarrel as much 
as the High and Low Church factions in England. It is 
the former who have possession of Vidyalankara College 
and Temple at Peliyagoda, near Kelani, whither I am 
driving to-day. There are two very eminent Buddhist 
priests here, a printing press is in operation, and an 
Oriental library is being built. But it is to see the people 
at their festival that I drive out to Kelani. Certainly I 
am satisfied, for I never expect again to witness such a 
picturesque throng. All Ceylon and Colombo seem to be 
en route to Grand Pass, three miles from the city, where 
Governor Sir Edward Barnes, in 1825, built a bridge of 



• • • 

Colombo and the Buddhist Temple at Kelaniya. 868 

boats across the Eelani river. Young and old, male and 
feijaale, singly or in families, on foot or in bullock 
'hackeries,' the natives — Sinhalese and Tamils — are 
trooping into the country, all clad in new and striking 
coloured garments, all bearing flowers, all picturesque, 
making up en m-asse a picture of laughing life seldom to be 
met with. Men and women wear two garments, the skirt, 
mlu or kilt, and the upper jacket or scarf. The brighest hues 
of Manchester are displayed in the prints. The men sport 
great tortoise-shell combs in the hair, whilst the women 
adorn theirs with pins. Sometimes the hair hangs straight 
and sleek down the back. All have umbrellas to protect 
themselves from the sun, and all are alike in the outward 
resemblance of the sexes. The dress and combs and 
hair confuse a stranger, and he knows not Eve from Adam. 
" A bullock * hackery * is a vehicle only known in the 
East. Small, humped cattle, the size of Shetland ponies, 
are harnessed roughly to carts without springs, which, 
covered with thatch, often contain two floors, on which the 
passengers, however, have to lie down. Sometimes one 
comes across a bullock drawing a light buggy, and 
trotting along brisldy. By Brahmin and Buddhist alike 
the cow is held to be a sacred animal. They must not 
eat its flesh. But they ill-treat these poor little bullocks 
in a manner which arouses my indignation. The patient 
beasts are especially suffering on this day when the faith- 
ful are hurrying to the shrine of him, who, of all men, 
most enjoined humanity to the brute creation. Two little 
animals are drawing, perhaps, a family of a dozen. Blows 
and oaths are showered on them without ceasing, and my 
soul is wroth within me ; otherwise this is a perfect after- 
noon. After crossing the bridge of boats at Grand Pass 
you drive along a narrow road bordered by coco-palms 
and bananas and tamarinds. But there is never any 
distance without habitations. Some of mud, red tiled, are 
permanent abodes ; others of thatch, seem erected by the 
roadside just for these days of festival. Food and flowers 
are for sale everywhere. Never save in the city of Mexico 
have I seen so many flowers as here. The whole country 
seems full of them. There is an overpowering fecundity 
of nature in Ceylon — all around, in still life, in the animals, 
in the human race, you see it — everything is increased and 
multiplied abnormally. This might well be the birthplace 



864 Ceylon in the Jiibilee Year. 

of onr race ; a man need not be a patriarcli here to be 
surrounded by troops of grandchildren. And so laughingly 
exchanging greetings with the pilgrims, whom my Muham- 
madan driver, I daresay, curses a good deal, the time 
passes till, two miles from Eelani railway station, we 
enter Petiyagoda. The throng by this time is immense. 
There have been special trains from Colombo in the after- 
noon, and thousands are trudging along the road, on 
foot or riding in hackeries. Unhappily for them the rain 
has commenced to fall heavily. 

" There is a regular bazaar around the entrance to the 
temple. Everything, it seems, can be bought here. This 
is the great harvest of the stall-holders. Oa.^s, their 
New Year's Day, the Sinhalese ' indulge in the few amuse- 
ments they enjoy, and in such luxuries as they can 
afford.' One of these luxuries consists in having their 
fortunes told by astrologers, who predict the propitious 
hours in the approaching year on which to commence 
duties, pleasures or journeys. I wonder if the astrologers 
foresaw or fortold the abominable weather on this fete day. 
However, I am here, and must see it through. At the 
bottom of the steps I am taken possession of by an 
emasculate-looking individual, who informs me that, he is 
the temple guide. He is a full-blooded Sinhalese and 
acknowledges to the name of Perera. This, with Fernando 
and De Silva, is as common in Ceylon as Smith, Jones and 
Brown are in England. There are no end of * Des' and 
* Dons,' too, in the Directory. This is the remnant of 
the Portuguese occupation. Many of these high-sounding 
names belong to full-blooded * niggers,' whose ancestors 
were baptized by the Roman Catholic missionaries, but 
who relapsed into Buddhism on the first chance. I tell 
Perera I shall call him * Peter,' to which he cheerfully 
assents. And I inform Peter that I am a Buddhist, 
' higher up ' than his priests, as he can plainly see. He 
treats me with an accession of respect, whether real or 
fictitious I know not, and we walk off to see the relics. 
There are a number of curious, silver statuettes, which 
may be idols dug up on this spot where, before the advent 
of Buddhism, Vishnu and other male and female deities 
were worshipped. One god, Wibhisana, is still held in 
repute here, having a local reputation among the ignorant, 
although the educated Buddhist despises such supersti- 



Colombo and the Btiddhist Temple at Kelaniya. 865 

tions. Then I am taken to the groat show. In a paviUon 
there is a placard in English. ' The hones of Buddha 
may now be seen.' ' The bones of Buddha ' at this 
temple on a silver dish under a glass case are not much of 
a show. They appear like a very decayed tooth smashed 
up, and do not impress me, although, naturally, I give my 
contribution towards building the library for which the 
plate is held out here. My rupee inspires more respect 
and faith in my Buddhism. 

<' Architecturally, all Buddhist temples are alike. The 
Dagoha is the principal feature in all. Derived from 
dhatu-garba, the matrix or receptacle of a relic, a dagoba is 
a mere bell-shaped tomb of brick or stone, covered often 
with a preparation of lime, forming a sort of chunaniy which 
receives a high polish. The Dagoba is surmounted by a 
spire and enclosed by a row of pillars. The Dagoba — the 
imitation of the tomb of Buddha — is a useless piece of 
work, as for that matter church spires are, unless when 
used as landmarks. The shrines around, where the 
praying takes place, are ordinary buildings. Peter leads me 
through the crowd to the sacred altar, behind which is a 
gigantic painted wooden figure of Buddha, and of several 
gods or saints. Peter is anxious to explain to me that 
the Oreat Ood Almighty is not here, but that He will 
come some day, incarnated in a new Buddha. I marvel 
that all over the world there should be the same belief in 
an earth god — that we should ever make Him in our own 
image. Buddha's injunction was, 'Abstain from all sin, 
acquire all virtue, repress thine own heart.' " 



APPENDIX XVn. 

STATISTICS OF CEYLON RAILWAYS. 

(PBEPABBD BT. J. FBBaUSON.) 

See The Railway Map inserted at end of the Yolmne. 

Gauge, 6 feet 6 inches, same as Indian Lines. 



Lines. 


Miles. 


Total Cost. 
Bs. 


Per Mile. 
Bs. 


Speed 

Miles 

Perhr 


Traffio 
Beoeipts in 
1885. Bs. 


Oolombo Mid Eandv 


74i 

17 

27i 


17,884,880* 
2,674.627 
2,192,214 

220,790 


288,858* 

157,881 

84,828 

88,886 


25 
20 
25 

15 

22 
(Av.) 

20 

12 

18 
(Av.) 


1,648,940 
249,869 
248,678 

19,867 


Petadeniya and Nawalapitiya . . 

Colombo and Kalntara 

Branch line Mahara Jonotion 
and Mahara Qnany 

Free jproperty of the Colony . . 

Eandv and Matale (with debt of 
£275,000 

Nawalapitiya and Nanooy a (with 
debt of £900,000) 

Bailways complete and working 

Dimbnla-TJva (Hapntale Section) 
Kalntara and Bentota Section 


1211 
41i 


22,472,461 

8,891,952 
10,778,000 


184,000 
(Average) 

198,966 

256,500 


2,167,849 

78,044 
866,927 


181 


86,687,418 


202,417 
(Average) 


2,607,820 


Already Surveyed and Estimated. 

« 




25^ 
9 


6,500,000+ 
550,000 


254,902 
61,000 


12 
25 





Total Miles 215^. 

Traffic Receipts in 1885 as above Bs. 2,607,320 

Working Expenses and Improvements to Lines 1,467,699 

Profit Rs. 1,139,621 

Or nearly four per cent, on total capital cost, although the full benefit 
of the expenditure on Nanuoya Line can only be realized when the ex- 
tension reaches Haputale, where the new Uva traffic is tapped. 



* This includes large amount wasted by Limited Company, afterwards 
paid off. 

t This is the Consulting Engineer's estimate, but with the experience 
of rock and earth work gained on the Nanuoya Section, it is believed 
that Rs. 6,000,000 or Rs. 200,000 per mile will suffice for the Haputale 
Section if constructed by the P. W. Department. 






J., 






APPENDIX XVIII. 

CASTE IN CEYLON. 

In illustration of the remarks on pages 89-40, and 251, 
we may refer here to evidences of a very unfortunate 
revival of caste feeling in the rural districts of Ceylon. 
This is attributable, in the opinion of many observers — 
among the natives more particularly — to an influence 
emanating from the present Governor, Sir Arthur Gordon, 
who has, most unfortunately, in public utterances, ofiScial 
documents, and ceremonies, made much of '* natives of 
birth,'' and led the agents of Government and native 
headmen, and through them, minor officials, to believe 
that caste distinctions may well be revived. As a conse- 
quence, there have been many quarrels, assaults, and even 
minor riots in native villages owing to caste animosities 
and jealousies which were supposed so have died out. 
The people who consider themselves of the higher castes 
are now on the qui vive in many places to resent those of 
alleged lower castes dressing themselves above the waist, 
or on more than one shoulder, using jackets or combs for 
their hair, which, under the benign and civilizing influence 
of past Governments, had become an almost universal 
practice among the people. Governor Sir William 
Gregory in his tours through the island, especially the 
remoter parts where caste distinctions lingered longest, 
specially discouraged any caste or dress distinctions, and 
even censured Government officers for allowing people of 
so-called " lower castes '* to appear with their bodies 
(women as well as men) not properly covered from the 
waist upwards. This did much to encourage dressing, 
self-respect, and even a mild ambition among the indus- 



368 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

trious classes, and provoked no jealousy, because even a 
Governor's word, or even nod, is law to the Sinhalese of 
all ranks. About 1880, however, in a translation of 
Eandyan laws made in manual form, partly under official 
auspices, entitled '< Niti-Niganduwa/' an attempt was 
made to classify different castes, and within the past three 
years, it is said, rightly or wrongly, this classification — 
(effected so as to exalt one caste) — ^has been as good as 
recognized at all Government offices. This has provoked 
much angry feeling, and amidst a great deal of discussion 
in the native press and much pamphleteering, two pro- 
ductions especially have come under our notice. The 
writer of these in a private note thus expresses himself in 
answer to our inquiries as to the reasons which led him to 

publish : — 

** June 9, 1887. 

" Sib, — Though I cannot aay that I wrote the review of * Niti-Nigan- 
dawa * with an unraffled mind, yet I can assure you that I wrote 
the * Ghaturvarnaya * with the best of feelings. I have been a con- 
stant reader of the Observer for the last thirty or forty years, and I 
have the happiness of being personally known to you, therefore I say 
it with all sincerity that it is neither from the Government nor from 
our countrymen that we can expect to get some relief from the griev- 
ances under which we now labour, but from you. 

Ten or twelve years ago there was a Muhandiram of the tom-tom 
beater caste. He was not only using his crooked comb and the high 
comb, but on State occasions he was using his sword and belt, and 
nobody ever thought of molesting him ; but now there is a feeling abroad 
that Government now recognizes caste — hence the late tragedy at 
Attidiya. A registrar of marriages in the Southern Province lately 
objected to a marriage party coming to his premises in carriages, and 
did not give a chair even for the bride or bridegroom, though they 
were a respectable class of people. — Yours obediently, .** 

From the pamphlets themselves we quote as follows : — 

From "A Review of Niti-Niganduwa and the Caste- System in 
Ceylon." By W. W. Colombo, 1885.— •« While wealth, science, and 
general knowledge have been advancing with astonishing rapidity, 
bigotry, pride, and prejudice in a section of our community have 
made still more gigantic strides, and threaten to outrun all the efforts 
hitherto made to arrest their progress. Without in the least degree 
trying to help their countrymen in their onward course, they are 
always trying to aggrandize themselves and to secure a monopoly of 
Government high posts and ranks showing that they are entitled to 
them by birth. . . . 

*' It might, perhaps, be asked, was not the late Louis De Zoysa 
Maha-Mndaliyar, that well-known oriental scholar, a man of the 
Salagama caste, and yet was he not promoted to tiie highest rank 



Caste in Ceylon. 869 

which a native can aspire to ? Yes : every man is in some degree the 
mirror of his age. . . , 

" Mr. De Zoysa's age was an age attempting, with a strong, unre- 
laxed, endeavour to be earnest, persevering, and ambitious. Com- 
pulsory labour having been abolished, and amalgamation of classes 
having taken place, the peasant had been shown how he might rise to 
be noble ; the homy-handed craftsman how he could tread the 
paths which lead to the highest places of national distinction ; and 
the humble scholar how he could advance into the saloons of great- 
ness. . . . 

** Mr. De Zoysa was allowed to climb up to the summit of the hill 
of official promotion ; but his followers, like the Jews of old, are 
obliged to wander about in the wilderness. The Government since 
then, forsaking the liberal and enlightened policy of the former 
Governors, and instead of making an outward progress in the right 
direction, is now pursuing a downward course. . . , 

" A paragraph in the issue of the Ceylon Observer oi the 27th July, 
1885,* having given us occasion for alarm we traced out its origin to 
the existence of a book printed at the Government Press so far back 
as the year 1880 ; since then it has been in circulation through the 
hands of Government officials. That work, though entitled ' Niti- 
Niganduwa, or the Vocabulary of Law,' has in it, headed * Historical,' 
a chapter embodying a distinctive classification of castes with the 
assertion that the ' Gowiya is considered the chief caste in this king- 
dom.' What induced the compiler in getting up a Vocabulary of 
Law to insert therein a classification of castes, and to state the 
superiority of the caste to which he belongs, is a problem which haa 
to be solved. A man of ordinary intellect and common sense will 
easily divine the mystery and the object of the compiler to be to 
secure for himself as an author a prominent post under Government, 
whilst his showing will induce the Government to hold such others of 
his community in such estimation as to obtain for them a monopoly 
of the most honourable and lucrative offices to which natives are 
eligible. That book, though printed in the year 1880, it is strange 



•' * The paragraph referred to is as follows : — • Caste Be-establi8Hki> 
IN Ceylon. — This may be news to sovfie readers of the Observer, 
Others have already known and felt this. The Portuguese and Dutch 
with all their old-world ideas and crude notion of things never stooped 
to the meanness of upholding the senseless, absurd system of caste. 
But it has been left to the British Government and to enlightened 
statesmen of the Liberal school to re-establish caste in Ceylon. It ia 
said that a brochure on caste, as it existed amongst the Sinhalese, was 
got up under well-known local auspices, printed in England, and dis- 
tributed amongst influential members of the Civil Service. But the 
absurd part of the story is that Sir Arthur Gordon regards it in the 
light of the Englishman's Bible, an authority beyond question like 
Dod or Debrett. According to this authority appointments, as well as 
preferments to honorary rank and title, are to be confined to a few 
families ; the rest are to be discarded. The Clerical Examination 
Scheme is to be done away with. Go on, brave Sir Arthur ! Go on 
in the same style, and we shall have cause to thank you as one of 
Ceylon's benefactors I — Cow.' 

25 



370 Ceylon in the Jvbilee Year, 

to observe, made its way through Govemmexit Departments in snch a 
manner that either none (excepting those of the oommnnity who ex- 
pected to be benefited) or very few of the other classes were aware of 
its existence and the havoc it was playing, till the appearance of the 
paragraph referred to. . . . 

*' The reason why most of the Gowiyas have snoceeded so far in 
securing to themselves lucrative and responsible offices under the 
Government is attributable to the fact (which is now evinced) that it 
has been for a series of years past their object, if not the motto, to im- 
press upon new officials and heads of Departments, as far as possible, 
that they are the leading members of the native community and that 
to them exclusively belonged posts of responsibility and honour under 
the Government. . . . 

**But justice compels us to say that caste has no claim on any 
right-thinking mind ; for, as a system, * it is founded on a lie,' * it 
puffs up certain classes with pride,' * it keeps many of our people in 
social degradation,* ' it divides man from man,' it concentrates all 
religion in outward ceremony,' and * it is a great obstacle to pro- 
gress.' . . . 

<' What is the object of introducing a list of castes into the Niti- 
Niganduwa ? Are we to understand from it that caste is to be An- 
glicized, and receive the sanction of the Legislature, that different 
occupations, professions, and trades may be made hereditary and 
preserved in an unbroken line? If Tikiri Appu, the son of an ordinary 
peasant whose father, grandfather, or great-grandfather had never 
held any office under the late Eandyan Government or under the 
present British rule, has pushed his way into a prominent situation, 
and into power and influence, we ask, what evil had he done ? Whom 
has he injured? Has Tikiri Appu by his success robbed another of 
industry, talent, application, or energy? Does not Tiiri Appu 
deserve the signal honour and emolument won by hard study and 
patient perseverance ? Has Loku Appuhami, the grandson of Unam- 
buwe Dissawa, a reckless young man who has squandered away his 
patrimonial estate in profligacy, a just ground of complaint against 
the success of Tikiri Appu ? Are we to understand that every native 
is to toddle, in unbroken generations, in the foot-prints of his father 
and grandfather ? Why ? that would hurt the feelings of most of the 
up-country Batemahatmeyas and low-country Mudaliyars and reduce 
them from their hard-won eminence into the degradation of sluggish 
cultivators and drowsy cow-herds. If such be the views of Messrs. Pana- 
bokke and Co., one thing is pretty certain, viz : — others will not gratify 
them by thinking as they think. * No, no,' says honest, true humanity, 
• Let those who have won a position by fair means enjoy it.' * Yes,' 
murmur the objectors, * let the past be past, but keep down others.' 
Why ? Where is the reason of this, or the justice ? If some might 
struggle honourably for eminence, why not others also ? If some 
have attained eminence, and hold it as legitimate standing ground, 
why wonder at, much less complain of, aspirants for like success by 
similar means? . . . 

** The great difficulty of arriving at a fair and reasonable conclusion 
as to the number and order of castes in Ceylon, arises from the sup- 
pression of truth, suggestion of falsehood, and the alteration of his- 
torical records. So &at no two natives will give the same order and 
classification to all the castes. Such being the case, all the prominent 



Caste in Ceylon, 871 

classes of natives have a hobby of their own. The Gowiya caste 
assert now for the first time, as we learn from Niti-Niganduwa, that 
they are a mixed race of Eshestriyas, Brahmins, and Vaisyas ; the 
people called Earawe, that they are of a Eshestriya descent ; and the 
people called Salagama, that they are Brahmins. I shall not enter 
into a disquisition of that subject now. There are no Eshestriyas, 
Brahmins, or Vaisyas, properly so called, amongst us, at present ; for 
all the Sinhalese people are now either Buddhists or Christians. And 
no sooner had we forsaken the Vedas and the Shastras, than, according 
to the law of caste, we had become Ohandalas or out-castes. Chris- 
tianity asserts that Qod made all mankind of one blood, which is a 
physical fact as easy of demonstration as any truth in natural science; 
whilst Buddhism repudiates caste, Buddha declares that ' a man be- 
comes a Brahmin by what he does, and a Wasalaya (an outcast) by 
what he does.* . . . 

"It is very much to be regretted that the Government now 
Appears to be under the delusion that the aristocratic class among 
the Sinhalese is the higher grade of the Gowiya caste, which is indeed 
a very great mistake ; for there is no aristocratic class among the 
Sinhalese; whilst descendents of high Government officials and 
others to whom various accidents have contributed to give an 
importance among all castes, consider themselves as entitled to 
lead in their respective spheres. Nor does the Government seem 
to know that landed proprietors and professional gentry are to be 
found among all the prominent castes as well as among the Gowiya 
caste. There is, therefore, a wide-spread e£fort among some of the 
most bigoted of the Gowiya caste, to make the most of the present 
opportunity ; and hence the work in question is a genuine production 
of by-gone days, though it existed only in the imagination of those 
who desired it, realizing the words of Sir Walter Scott : — 

'"Oh what a tangled web we weave 
When first we practise to deceive ! ' 

*' True it is that the claims of caste are ignored in the administration 
of the law; but yet in certain departments they are now guarded 
with some anxiety, which seems both inconsistent and unnecessary, 
as it is sometimes construed by the caste men as an authoritative 
recognition of caste. There is no necessity at all to interfere with 
any lawful usage. The Government need not insist on a renunciation 
of caste as the condition of public employ ; nor should the feelings 
of any public servants be wounded by an unnecessary intrusion on 
their prejudices. The question is one of private opinion and feeling, 
on which every man may be left to his own judgment, provided that 
Government extend no advantage to one which is unfair to another. 
Natives can observe what rules they choose among themselves ; but 
the public service ought to be ordered exclusively on public considera- 
tions. I know a Mudaliyar of a certain Eaohcbieri, an illegitimate 
son of a very low grade of Gowiya, who puts the question, ' What is 
your caste ? ' to every native candidate for any post in that Eachcheri ; 
and if the man is not one of the Gowiya caste, throws every obstacle 
in his way, as if being born in that caste were a sure passport for 
jpublio service in Ceylon. In the public service, it requires clerk8» 



872 Ceylon m the Jubilee Year. 

aocoontants, interpreters, and Mudaliyars of Eorales ; and not 
Eshestriyas, Brahxnins, Yaisyas, and Gowiyas who are the servants 
of the aboTe three castes. Candidates, therefore, have a right ta 
encouragement according to official qualifications alone, without 
inquiries made regarding their parentage or connections. All castes 
should be equally and impartially admitted, and the most qualified 
will always receive the preference. What is needed, therefore, is to 
place the test of superiority in the better discharge of duties, and not 
in the curiosities of a pedigree. Then no distinction shall be known 
among individuals but those which arise from talent, ability, and 
integrity of conduct. 

'* A community can make progress only when every member of it has 
the reward of merit laid open to him ; and capacity and talent for the 
discharge of duties required in the social state are diffused pretty 
equally among the different orders of the community. It is, therefore, 
a very bad policy, if the officials of a country, instead of encouraging 
mutual good will and reciprocal kind attentions, say to the great bulk 
of the people : ' Neither talents nor exertions shall avail you : you are 
bom in a degraded caste : you cannot therefore be eligible for Govern- 
ment posts ! * A large part of this evil is to be laid to the account 
of some of the high officials, who, though not openly, yet tacitly, 
encourage caste distinctions in the distribution of prizes left at their 
disposal, according to their own whims and caprices, irrespectively of 
claims and qualifications. It is, therefore, the duty of a paternal 
Government to arrest this evil alone by disowning all respect for a 
folly which is so detrimental to the well-being of a large community 
such as the Sinhalese, as those in authority in former days did, who 
are still remembered with the deepest gratitude, as the greatest bene- 
factors of our country. . . . 

** According to the present state of our country the union of all 
classes in one corporate body is what is most desirable. But can we 
realize such a consummation so long as there is no peace among all 
classes ? There is in our community a section that has always some 
complaint, some cause to grumble, something to be dissatisfied with. 
They complain that in public schools their children are obliged to sit 
on the same form with the children of other castes. They grumble 
that in the railway carriages they have to sit side by side with other 
castes of people enjoying the comforts and conveniences of the 
new mode of travelling, like themselves. They are dissatisfied that 
the Christian women of Talanpitiya, a village of the Paduwas, who,^ 
having acquired habits of decency, had left off their old fashion of 
going half-naked, as if the privilege of covering the bosom were their 
own peculiar prerogative. . . . 

'* The Oriental mind regards the State as pre-eminently the fountain 
of honour; and its service is the most coveted, as well as the most 
profitable profession. The ambition to enter it has, therefore, in this 
country, always outweighed every objection of caste, rank, and 
religion itself. . . . 

" The Portuguese Government freely employed all castes of men in 
their service, so that one Don Cosmo, a man of the Salagama caste, 
became a general. And the Dutch Government never refused the 
services of men of any caste for posts of honour. Under the British 
Government also the same indiscriminate admission to offices, as of 
old, has been tolerated. . . . 



Caste in Ceylon. 378 

** A great number of men are now employed in the publio service. 
The introduction of railways and the electric telegraph has provided 
places for many more. But though the passion for public employ 
continues unabated and insatiable, yet is there a single man of the 
80-called higher order of the Gowiya caste men in the Railway, Postal, 
or Telegraph Department ? . . . 

** We believe it, therefore, to be the paramount duty of a parental 
Oovemment towards those whom it has taken under its care and 
<!ontrol, not to be predisposed towards one class to the disadvantage 
of another. 

** Since of late natives have been admitted to high offices of trust 
^ith greatly augmented salaries in the Bevenue Department. But 
was there a single Burgher or a native of another caste chosen for any 
of those places other than the Gowiyas, although there are natives of 
other castes, as well educated, if not better, who possess so much 
influence in their respective communities, as those that have been 
already selected possess in their own community. / 

** We trust therefore, that the present Government will continue to 
bear in mind that Magna Gharta of the great body of the Sinhalese 
declaring that it be ' fully understood that it is the principle of this 
Government to recognize no distinction of caste or colour, the only 
ground of promotion being talents and qualifications * penned on the 
3rd April, 1841, by no less a personage than the Bight Honourable 
J. A. Stewart-Mackenzie, one of the most distinguished and en- 
lightened British rulers that ever administered the affairs of this 
island. 

* * After all this controversy, one thing remains now indisputably 
■clear — that there are in the world only two castes — the * good ' and 
the *bad.'" 



" A Few Thoughts on Chaturvamaya, or the Four-fold Social 
System of Castes." By -W. W. Colombo, 1886.—" We sincerely 
hoped that under the pressure of steam, electricity, European influence, 
diffusion of knowledge and extension of Christianity, the pernicious 
caste system in Ceylon would have been, before long, entirely done 
a,way with. But we were sadly disappointed in our hopes ; for, whilst 
these powerful influences are in full operation, a reaction in favour of 
oaste has taken place of late ; and those who are benefited thereby 
have taken advantage of this reaction. . . . 

*• The compilers of * Niti-Niganduwa* endeavour to show that there 
are four principal and eighteen inferior castes, whereas there are only 
iour great castes, some mixed castes and out-castes. . . . 

" According to the strict rules of the caste system no sooner a man 
has forsaken Brahminism, than he is an out-caste ; and loss of caste 
is equivalent to civil death. The out-caste is denied admission to his 
father's house ; the nearest relations refuse to eat with him or speak 
with him. He is excluded from religious ceremonies and social meet- 
ings. His wife is released from the conjugal rights ; his children 
belong to him no longer ; his property is forfeited. Therefore, as we 
are no longer Brahmins in rehgion, we are no longer Brahmins, 
Kshestriyas, Vaisyas or Sudras. Christianity declares that God has 
made all men of one blood ; and that God has no respect of persons. 
Buddhism repudiatescaste. Buddha is represented by European writera 



874 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

as a philosophical opponent of popular superstition and Brahminical 
caste. This sage having enumerated the qualities he would require 
in the woman who aspired to be his wife, the king Suddhodana, his 
father, directed his minister to go into the great city, Kapilawastu, 
and to enquire there in every house after a girl possessed of these good 
qualities, lowing at the same time the princess enumeration, and utter- 
ing two stanzas of the following meaning. * Bring hither that maiden 
who has the required qualities, whether she be of the royal tribe or 
of the Brahmin caste ; of the gentry or of the plebeian class ; my son 
regardeth not tribe or family extraction ; his delight is in good quali- 
ties, truth, and virtue alone. ' In Nepaul, where Buddhism is professed, 
the original inhabitants were all of one caste, or had no caste ; but 
their descendants, in the course of time, became divided into many 
castes according to the trades or professions which they followed ; 
though even now we are told that in Nepaul caste is merely a popular 
usage, without the sanction of religion, and altogether a very Afferent 
thing from caste properly so called. In Tibet and Burma, both 
Bnddhistical countries, caste is unknown. In China there are clans, 
resembling those of the Scotch Highlanders, but this institution 
differs from caste, and is peculiar to this singular country. But in 
Ceylon there appears to have been a greater leaning toward caste than 
among any other Bnddhistical people, which had arisen from their 
connection with the Tamils. 

** Some writers assert that the people of this country are of Aryan 
descent. Yes; so they are to some extent. As Wijaya and his 
followers came from Wango (Bengal) they may be called Indo- Aryans. 
But as we learn from * Maiia Wanso ' that he sent for wives for him- 
self and his associates from amongst the Tamils of Southern India 
(Madura) in the Pandian kingdom, and that they were accompanied 
nere by eighteen officers of state, together with seventy-five menial 
servants, we see that at the very outset of the Wijayan dynasty 
in Ceylon, there was a commingling of Aryan and Dravidian races. 

"From that time Tamils &om Southern India coming over to 
Ceylon, and joining themselves with those who arrived at first, a 
hybrid race called Goviyas arose, half Aryans and half Dravidians ; 
whilst some of the aboriginal tribes kept themselves aloof from these 
adventurers. However, in course of time, all were incorporated in 
one common name, the Sinhalese ; although some of the aboriginal 
races are no more Sinhalese because they had adopted the Sinhalese 
language, than the Cornish people are English because they speak the 
English language. . . . 

" The Tamil word Vellala also, which the Goviyas have adopted by 
way of distinction as their caste name, as the word Goviya, means a 
cultivator. 

"Mr. Panabokke being fully conscious, with these strong and 
incontrovertible evidence before us to the contrary, that he could not 
maintain the theory of some of his low-country brethren that the 
Goviyas are Vaisyas — that is, of the Welanda caste — started a new 
theory, by which as if trying to avoid Scjlla, he struck on Charybdis, 
and made the Goviyas sink still deeper in the mire, in reducing them to 
a lower position instead of raising them to a higher one, and in making 
them a mixed caste. We see, therefore, that the pride of caste is a 
mere bosh. It is indeed a pity that as a Buddhist he did not take 
heed of Buddha's words : — 



Caste in Ceylon, 375 

'* * A man does not become low-caste by birth. 
Nor by birth does one become high-caste, 
High-oaste is the result of high actions, 
And by actions does a man degrade himself to caste that is low/ 

" * Is there no caste feeling amongst the English ? ' is a question 
very often put to us by some of our countrymen ; and our answer had 
been always ' certainly not.' On the contrary their religion teaches 
them the * Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man/ that 
caste and class feelings ought to be laid aside, and that there is no 
respect of person with God. The social institutions of England 
neither prevent social union and interchange of ideas between the 
various classes of society, as those of Ceylon, nor operate to set class 
against class, to bar the lower rising to the upper, and to make the 
national union impossible. On the contrary, in England all ranks 
and orders so run into each other and blend imperceptibly together, 
that it becomes impossible to separate them into sharply defined 
strata, or to say where the upper end and the middle or the lower 
begin. 

''My dear countrymen, we are either Buddhists or Christians. 
Therefore, those who now attempt to maintain unhallowed distinctions 
must be told that all such distinctions have been lost with the Yedas 
and the sacrifices. 

Caste, in fact, originated like slavery, in a war of races, and breathes 
still the true spirit of slavery. It is true that during centuries of 
this slaveiy, the iron has entered the soul, that the hereditary bonds- 
man now hugs his fetters. Popular prejudices will no doubt long 
resist the light of truth on this as on other subjects of education. 
The attempt to point out to the sticklers of caste that the distinctions 
which they consider inviolable have no sanction in their religious 
books, may be as useless as to argue with the devil-dancers that their 
ceremonies are unauthorized in the Bana-books. But what was the 
cause of the decline and fall of the Kandian kingdom ? It is this 
pernicious system of castes. It had become one of the greatest clogs 
on the advancement of our people, thoroughly preventing improve- 
ment in our social and political status beyond a certain point. Such 
a system, elevating one class and depriving another, kept the ideas of 
the latter for ever subdued, and entirely snipped from them the 
aspiration after superiority and influence, which form the greatest 
incentive to active exertion. ... 

"Is caste, on the whole, advancing or retrograding in Ceylon ? is & 
question which cannot but be highly interesting to every lover of his 
country and every admirer of the present Government. It must, 
however, be confessed that, considering all in all, it seems to be now 
putting on new life and vigour. Therefore, its votaries are now show- 
ing themselves more openly ; its claims are now more broadly pro- 
claimed ; and every engine, likely and unlikely, is now being brought 
tp action to maintain its sinking credit. But we sincerely hope that 
like the giant struggling to retain the breath which is fast leaving his 
body, its downfall would be equally rapid. For the precedent laid 
down by the Bight Honourable J. A. Stewart Mackenzie, one of the 
ablest of our Governors by his Minute of April 3rd, 1841, the Magna 
Charta of the Sinhalese, declaring that it be * fully understood that 
it is the princijple of this Government to recognize no distinction of 



876 Ceylon in the Jvhilee Year. 

caste or colour, the only ground of promotion being talents and qualifi' 
cations* sbonld not be set at nought by his successors. 

*' To those who are at all acquainted with the natural workings of 
the human mind in general, and the tendency of the caste-system in 
particular, it can occasion no surprise that caste and irreligiousness 
should co-exist to a great extent in the same state of society. This 
is the case in Ceylon at this moment. 

** It is a melancholy consideration that of these two mighty delu- 
sions, a certain portion of our countrymen are the willing subjects who 
profess to be Christians for public show, but from whose back doors 
would be seen men of yellow robes wend their way to their houses 
on poya and other Buddhistical days ; and that to their influence a 
great part of the miseries of our country is owing. 

** And it is a fact too palpable to escape observation, and too certain 
to admit of denial, that those who have no fixed religious principles 
amongst the better educated classes of our people are the greatest 
sticklers of caste. 

*' The purest portion of all moral theories and the highest ideas of 
all patriots have been gathered from, or will be found concentrated 
within, the Christian system. Its universal and living acceptance 
implies the prevalence in every mind of peace, and goodwill, and 
generosity. If the most accomplished * thinker * in society set him- 
self to frame rules for its reconstruction and transformation into a 
state of happiness, he would find all his labours concentrated within 
the short sentence, * Whatever ye would that others do to you, do ye 
also to them.* If the most benevolent theorist commenced to form 
rules for the advancement of individual comfort, and of the comfort 
of all individuals, he would find his labour useless, because it would 
issue in the commandment given with greater power and in more 
solemnity than when the rocks were shaken, that *ye love one 
another.' There are no more powerful injunctions of universal 
justice and goodness than these two gentle commandments ; and if 
All who profess to obey them even understood what they profess, we 
•should have no more grievances to make, while by-and-by caste with 
all its concomitant evils would be things unknown. They would 
destroy themselves by transmutation. . . . 

'' One of the greatest dangers to which Missionary schools in 
this country is now liable, is that of being secularized through 
Ooyemment influence, whereby the whole tenor of some schools, 
their masters, and their pupils, are brought down to the lev6l of non- 
■Christian schools. Is it then surprising that education given in such 
schools is more secular than religious ? How can it be otherwise 
when the whole object of the masters and mistresses of such schools 
is to realize as large a grant as possible from Government ? What 
plan can be more djrectly calculated to arouse religious hatred, and to 
give a sectarian direction to education, than to announce to religious 
bodies that the public purse is open to as many of them as choose to 
€mbark in the cause of public instruction, %,nd that the grants to each 
wiU be proportioned to the amount of secular instruction they impart ? 
By this scheme the Government literally renounces the idea that 
education is a matter of common and civil concern, resigns the func- 
tions of the state into the hands of the people, and gives full rein to 
the development of religious rivalries. The result is exactly what 
might be expected. A nondescript sort of education is imparted in 



Caste in Ceylon. 377 

such Boboolfl — ^neither a sound religious education, nor a substantial 
secular education. . . 

** Christianity is the basis of all modem civilization. It is from it 
that we take our respect for morality, for chastity, for the ties of 
family ; it is from it that we learn not to covet that which is not our 
own, and to respect the rights of others ; from it we learn to love even 
our enemies. Christianity, setting aside its Divine origin, is the 
foundation-stone of all that is great, and good, and sublime in human 
society ; all evils in civilization are departures from the noble tenets 
of this pure faith ; every form of tyranny and oppression is anti- 
Christian, and hateful to God. Therefore, Christianity, education, 
and civilization should go hand in hand. 

** Christianity, education, and civilization have within the last fifty 
years made a rapid progress in this country. Still they have much 
yet to do. They must penetrate not only into our institutions and 
.theories, but they must become the guide and lamp of our actions. 

** It is, therefore, a sound religious education that would enable our 
countrymen to strangle the Hydra with its four heads,* which coils 
around their necks. . . . 

** On a calm and comprehensive review of the state of our country 

irom the commencement of the British rule here, it is impossible to 

resist the conviction that, in spite of the best intentions and efforts of 

Government, in spite of railways and electric telegraphs, and in spite 

too of growing trade and extending commerce, caste feeling amongst 

the different sections of the community still threatens to be one of the 

.most prolific sources of evils in our country, preventing as it does all 

mutual good understanding between each other, and making national 

.union impossible. But so long as Government seems to permit one 

section of the community to say to the other, with respect to political 

privileges, * Hitherto shalt thou come, and no further ,* this evil shall 

not cease. Therefore, whether it will increase or diminish will entirely 

depend upon the action of Government, which alone can with a firm 

hand, as in the renowned days of Governor Sir Colin Campbell, make 

-each other shake hands and confess 

*• * I have sinn'd ; oh, grievously and often ; 
Exaggerated ill, and good denied.' 

And advise each — 

* * * Be wiser, kindlier, better than thou art.' . . . 

** Progress, we are told, characterizes the age. Progress has charac- 
terized every age. With us, however, progress downward is going on 
«tep by step with time. Progress upwards of which the age makes its 
boast, lags lazily. A large body of men are allowed to grow up with- 
out any kind of intercourse with those who are placed above them in 
point of wealth, perhaps intellect, and probably in worth. There 
are few ties binding together the various sections of the community. 
"The circles of this great trunk scarcely touch. A hard rind of pride 
divides them. All are men with many common sorrows and many 

** * Called Kshestriya, Brahmana, Vaisya, and Sudra ; or. Raja, 
Bamuna, Welanda, Govi. 



378 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

oommon objects, but they help not each other. What has been done 
to their less fortunate countrymen by those who are placed above them 
in point of wealth, intellect, and worth ? How many of them have 
gone down amongst them with kindness in their manner and in their 
hearts, to help them onwards and upwards ? 

*' It is, however, an encouraging feature of the times that notwith- 
standing all these discouragements there are such men amongst ua 
as Messrs. Bajapakse and Soysa who do so much for the advance- 
ment of their countrymen. And if there are some more men like 
them, then can certainly progress characterize the age. . . . 

*' We know that within the last fifty years, Ceylon, from being an 
obscure country, has risen to the importance of a rising British Colony, 
and one of the greatest emporiums in the East, whose exports and 
imports are not much less in amount than in any other country in 
Asia. This is, therefore, no time to clog its advancement by caste 
and class agitations, legislative enactments, or internal commotions. 
We know also that the so-called Sinhalese aristocracy is not an 
aristocracy of birth. Under the Portuguese and the Dutch Govern- 
ments, all public functions, civil and military, among the Sinhalese, 
were hereditary, and gave nobihty to the second generation. Hence 
the son of a Mudaliyar or Munhandiram was called an Appuhami, 
and the son of an Aratchy or Eankany, an Appu. They were exempt 
from direct taxation and compulsory labour. And there were Appu- 
hamies and Appus amongst all the prominent castes of the Sinhalese. 
-Therefore, we see that there is no aristocracy among the Sinhalese 
resembling the English aristocracy. In England the aristocracy con-^ 
sists of men of birth, wealth, and distinction, who have attained to 
eminence in honourable professions ; but in Ceylon there were Gattera,. 
Sattambiyo, and Bateberawayo, as Kat^mahatmayds and E6rdlas ; 
and men of questionable origin, as Mudaliyars and Muhandirama 
whose descendants now make the greatest noise about Mrth more 
than education. In making these remarks our object is to point out 
the danger into which our country is exposed by these designing men. 
Its peril does not arise from foreign enemies, but from a dozen 
crotchety men amongst us, who, adroitly seizing the present favourable 
opportunity, raise a * hue and cry,' regarding * birth and independent 
meansj^ as if they were the only men entitled to offices of trust and 
emoluments among the Sinhalese. 

*'His Excellency the Governor, in his opening address to the Legis- 
lative Council, was pleased to remark that ' the time has arrived when 
greater facilities for the attainment of responsible posts in the Govern- 
ment service should be afforded to natives of birth and education.* 
We hail the introduction of such a scheme as a great boon to our 
country ; but the term * natives of birth,' is a vague and indefinite 
term * capable of different constructions. Therefore, nothing is more 
likely to frustrate the good intentions of Government than the be- 
stowal of such preferments to a single section of the native community, 
as there are, according to the general acceptation of the phrase, men 
of * birth and education ' among all the prominent castes of people 
in Ceylon. However, 



* It is a very wrong term, for which *• worth " should be sub- 
stituted. — J. F. 



Caste in Ceylon, 879 

** ' If past experience may attain 

To something like prophetic strain,' 

we are afraid that an attempt would be made by a certain section of 
onr commmiity to make this a prerogative of theirs, and to give no 
small irritation and alarm to others. In that case it would only be 
a means of creating strife and contention among the natives. We 
hope, therefore, that the scheme in contemplation would be a compre- 
hensive and liberal one suited to the present advanced state of our 
country. 

** A conmiunity can make progress only when every member of it 
has the rewards of merit laid open to him, and when capacity and 
talents for the discharge of the duties required by the State are pretty 
equally diffused among the different classes of the community. Be- 
sides it would be a most ungenerous principle of legislation if the 
Government of a country, instead of encouraging mutual good- will 
and reciprocal kind attentions, should create dissensions and commo- 
tions in a community, in bestowing preferments on one section of it, 
which are denied to another section of the same conmiunity who have 
equal claims for such preferments. Such a course would, moreover, 
not only wage war against every principle of our nature, but paralyze 
all social, moral, and intellectual improvement in that community. 
That such was the actual state of Ceylon when the English first 
landed in this country is well known to all who possess any informa- 
tion on the subject. All the good which the English Government has 
been hitherto endeavouring to do to the Sinhalese community, there- 
fore, cannot be fully realized until the principles of eternal justice 
(the first principles of all rule and legislation) be applied to remove 
such unnatural distinctions among our people. 

** The British Government has given the people of Ceylon a degree 
and kind of liberty which most of our countrymen had never enjoyed 
either under the despotic heathen Kandyan kings, or under the benign 
Christian Government of the Portuguese and the Dutch. We, there- 
fore, only seek for the continuance of that liberty and the enjoyment 
of the essential rights of human nature ; and it is in this that the 
glory and prosperity of a nation properly consist. This we can secure 
only by the union in all the parts of the State, harmony in them all, 
and authority over them all. 

**But these are matters which some of the members of our Legislative 
Council think beneath their notice. It is enough for them if they can 
annoy or embarrass the Government, and obtain the reputation among 
the unrefiecting of being active patriots. We have little taste for such 
patriotism, and little respect for those who profess iU We desire to 
see in Council men whose minds are large enough to comprehend all 
the interests of the country, and who will not suffer themselves to be 
turned aside by petty motives from doing justice to all classes alike. 

** Ceylon has never before enjoyed such liberty as she does since the 
past few years. All classes have liberty to act and speak in accordance 
with their convictions. No man is, by reason of his wealth or of his 
rank, so high as to be above the reach of the law, and none, on the 
other hand, so poor and insignificant as to be beyond its protection. 
There is no longer any power in the State, under the influence of a 
gust of passion, to order a man to be trampled to death by elephants. 

*' Therefore, as the British Government has so well earned the 



880 . Ceylon in the JuUlee Year, 

gratitude and good wishes of all classes of our countrymen, by the 
unseliish and sincere desire which animates it to promote the welfare 
of the people committed to its charge, by the solicitude which it mani- 
fests to study the feelings and sentiments of the people in all impor- 
tant matters, and by the spirit of benevolence which underlies its 
actions, it is with great pain and remorse we say with respect to the 
present reaction in favour of caste, which some of its officials seem 
to foster, that they 

** * See the right, approve it, too ; 

Condemn the wrong, and yet the wrong pursue.' 

" British equity has clearly seen that no ideas of religion or honour 
can be permitted to violate the rights of life, freedom, or property. 
It remains to give the full and legitimate effect to this principle, by 
protecting human nature at large against the injurious and irrational 
distinctions of caste. Public schools are not afraid of contradicting 
the native sciences of astronomy, astrology, geography and jnedicine, 
without hurting the feelings of the people. Why should caste be then 
entitled to greater tenderness, when it is attended by so much injury 
to the moral and social improvement of the country ? On this account, 
caste is considered by missionaries a deadlier foe to the moral and 
religious progress of this country than idolatry itself. Besting as it 
does wholly upon opinion, repudiation of caste would be welcomed 
by thousands who have not the courage to effect such an emancipa- 
tion. . . . 

*' If the strongest argument against slavery be, not the cruelties 
that are its common adjunct, but its essential injustice, its absolute 
infraction of a Divine ordinance, its contrariety to the whole provi- 
dential economy ; then are we led to conclude that there is needed 
only a candid examination of this kindred evil by the Christian 
public, and the abolition of caste will be decreed by a power which 
has already worked marvels that will excite the attention and admira- 
tion and gratitude of all future generations ; for, wherever the love 
of Christ is felt in its power and purity, there will be an effort to 
raise every individual within the sphere of its influence to the highest 
pinnacle of moral and social dignity he can possibly attain.** 



APPENDIX XIX. 

THE CEYLON PEAKL FISHEKIES IN 1887. 

(From Letters to the *^ Ceylon Observer f^* by A, M, Ferguson ^ 

CM.G.) 

Mannar, Uh Aptil, 1887. 
The change of scene yesterday on the Pearl banks was 
from almost dead silence and solitude before dawn to 
the existence of active operations. Two thousand five 
hundred persons were en the shore, or in boats and trading 
vessels. Last evening this number was quadrupled. It is 
likely to be largely increased, as but short notice could be 
given of the fishery. 

The sight of boats starting shorewards at one o'clock 
yesterday would have delighted an artist's eye. The com- 
parison suggested was that of doves flocking to their 
windows. Beaching the shore about four o'clock, the 
oysters had to be carried to the Government enclosures, 
counted, apportioned, and a third, belonging to the boat- 
men and divers, sold. The retail trade is going on down 
to single oysters. 

Officers of the Highlanders seem determined to add 
pearl mussels to the enemies whose defences they have 
successftdly carried — for their representative here was 
determined not' to return empty-handed; but all were 
surpassed, however, by a great Madras native merchant, 
who last evening, at an auction held in the lamp-light in 
the timber and palm-leaf shed, purchased half a million 
oysters from the eight hundred and forty-two thousand of 
Government share. His first bid was E35 for a quarter 
of a million, but prices went ultimately down to El 5. 
Several chetties complained of a breach of understanding 
that only 119 be bid. The auction scene was most amus- 



882 Ceylon in the JttbUee Year. 

ing, the pnrchasers showing much hnman nakure. Mr. 
Twynam showed admirable patience and tact. 

We timed the so-called Arab diver, and got eighty-three 
seconds, or one over Sir Henry Ward's maximum; bat Mr. 
Twynam once got ninety-three, or over one and a half 
minute. Mr. Twynam has seen two men perish from 
staying mider too long. They gasped before reaching the 
snrface, then snnk like lead. Death was caused by 
asphyxia, or paralysis of the nerves. The lives of the 
divers are generally good : the vast majority are meat- 
eating Muhammadans, closely related to the people of this 
place, who are really South India settlers. The heat, 
scenery and race are all Indian. Whether the Sinhalese, 
pure Aryan, or mixed, no trace of them at SHavaturai 
pearl fishery or port. The general portly, well-fed appear- 
ance of the Ceylon Indian Tamils is striking. 

Masses of extraneous matter are taken up with the 
shells, but thrown away, which would be prized as precious 
by European naturalists. Fine corals, brilliant scarlet- 
striped star fishes, pearl shells, and covered growths, 
generally red coloured. 

Concrete kottos, or auction booths, are abandoned for 
mats on ground, the allotted land being defined by 
coir strings. After the fisheries, the floor was sold and 
resold at good prices. Parchasers now take oysters to 
private kottos allotted them at safe distance from inhabited 
portion. This and other strict sanitary measures, and 
digging of wells for good water near the beach, make 
a vast improvement, and cholera has been practically 
banished. Much credit is due to Mr. Twynam, who is 
only happy when at work. He seems impervious to sun 
heat, which is awfuL This, with the stench of the putrify- 
ing, is the reason why Europeans cannot flock to this 
wonderful romantic sight as to elephant kraals ; it was 
perfectly sufficient to have one whiff last evening from the 
kotto where samples were washed. 

Shells are rapidly opening to skates and old womanfish, 
but more destructive are small whelks, which, if they once 
effect an entrance, rapidly destroy. Over one hundred 
boats went off at ten last night. People sleep at the 
bank, and work from dawn to one o'clock. 

The pearl fishery divers find it to be so cold at six to 
eight fathoms (thirty-six to forty-eight feet) — the depth at 



The Ceylon Pearl Fisheries in 1887. 383 

which the oysters are generally found to exist in greatest 
abundance and healthiness — that they (the divers) are 
glad to warm themselves in the sun for a while after 
coming up from the performance of their task. In my 
telegrams I have mentioned the cases of two divers whom 
Mr. Twynam saw die from remaining too long under 
water, and I have suggested as the cause the non-seration 
of the blood, or what has lately been noticed as a cause 
of drowning, the sudden collapse or paralysis of certain 
muscles and nerves. The so-called **Arab diver'* who 
was timed by us to eighty-three seconds, differed from 
others in putting a compressor on his nose, and he was 
noticed to open his mouth widely and inhale air in large 
volume before going down with his stone and basket. 
He brought up — or rather, he collected in the rimmed net 
bag which he had round his neck until he filled it, and 
which, like the stone, was hauled up separately — forty-two 
oysters, which was considered a very good haul. All the 
divers when they come up seem glad to inhale a good gulp 
of air, but they do not, or only very rarely and temporarily, 
show signs of distress. Of the two fatal cases noticed by 
Mr. Twynam, one was a novice who, no doubt, miscalcu- 
lated what he could bear, from want of experience. The 
other was a practised diver, but he may have had organic 
disease. Captain Donnan states that he has never known 
the divers take anything to help them except snuff! Mr. 
Twynam once induced a diver to go to the bottom in fifteen 
fathoms (twice the average depth on the pearl banks), but 
he was so alarmed at the prolonged period from the man's 
diving to his reappearance, that he has not and never will 
repeat the experiment. The great difficulty in artificially 
propagating the pearl-bearing mussels, and the reason why 
all experiments here and in Southern India have failed, 
is the depth, six to eight fathoms, at which alone this 
species of shell-fish flourish. 

There are two divers to each stone, who are alternately 
up and down. We saw on board the guardship (one of the 
immigration vessels, a fine two hundred and fiftiy ton ship 
with three tall masts) a stone made of our common gneiss 
rock, and a specimen of some substitutes made of concrete 
at the breakwater. The weight seemed to be from thirty 
to forty pounds. The weight of the stone helps to carry 
the diver rapidly down, and as I have said, he has the net 



8S4 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

bag for tfa« ihells slnog ronud hia neck. On touching 
ground the diver detaches himself from the stone, which 
the force of hanling coolies on each fishing boat proceed 
at once to pnll np. Others haul up the b&fiket when the 
diver casts it off and gives the signal of a jerk to the rope. 
The divei himself has only to give plaj to his baoy&ncy 
to rise, bat he is careful to avoid oonUct with the boat, 
and will often dash off homontaUy outwards in coming to 
the surface, which he dom almost aimoltaneonsly with the 
hag of oysters he has gathered. "While he holds on hj 
the aide of the boat, tbe contents of his net bag are 
emptied into la^e ola baskets, foreign substances being 
thrown back into the sea, the net being soon ^ain ready 
for ase. In each boat we found a belted native "counter," 
wbo responded to the qnestion " etena ch^pee ? " bnt I 
noticed that Mr. Twynam always added a percentage to 
the number given. It seems as if the exact tmth could 
not be stated : indeed, I fancy that a good deal of fairly 
correct estimation goes for counting in the division of the 
Bpoil finally. The people, however, divide the oysters into 
fairly equal heaps, because they know not which heap 
may be allotted aB the boat's share. The boat now gets a 
third instead of the ancient fourth, which latterly was 
found not to be a sufficient inducement, and Mr. Twynam's 
calculation is that each man of some 2,S0O employed in 
the boats yesterday made about B3 wages. 

The boatmen and divers' share of oysters can at onoe, 
on division, be sold, so that the people employed have 
whatever advantage may accrue from being first in the 
market. At the Crovernment auction last evening it was 
amusing to hear one man allege that he did not purchase, 
as Saturday was an unlucky day I Another said people 
would blame him if he bid ; a man in the backgroimd 
said lie did not want people to know what he was bidding; 
while a bidder up to E25 said emphatically, "I'll not bid 
higher." Some were at work all night eaiiyiiig away 
tlicir lots of oysters, but a walk I took early this morning 
over sheila and fragments of shells eveiywhere, showed 
that the work of washing, except in the case of a few 
small retail purchasers, had not yet commenced. The 
demand here for ola mats and baskets, and for cadjans 
and palmyra leaves, is very large, bimdreds of temporary 
abo^B going up in all directions. 



The Ceylon Pearl Fisheries in 1887. 385 

Climate and soil are against vegetation here ; but the 
bay, bounded on one side by Kudramalle (well known to 
the Greek and Roman voyagers as Hippouros), is very 
spacious and pretty. But there are a good many rocks 
scattered about. The fleet of graceful- sailed boats sweep- 
ing along the horizon and making for the banks reminded 
me somewhat of the sardine Ashing vessels I saw in the 
Mediterranean. 

As to attaining anything like certainty or steadiness, or 
being able artificially to propagate the oysters, we seem 
as much in the dark as ever. On board the guardship 
yesterday (whence I saw another exciting scene of 114 
boats crowding round the ship to announce their loads 
and to skim shorewards, the noise and confusion being 
wonderful) I had the advantage of going over the charts 
of the pearl banks with Mr. Twynam and Capt. Donnan, 
who readily answered all my questions. The general 
results were that an extensive area of bank, with from six 
to eight fathoms of water on it, extends from near Mannar 
to Chilaw. The apparent conditions of bottom coral 
existing nearly everywhere seems to be generally very 
similar: spat and young oysters appear periodically on 
all. But it is only on the limited spaces called the 
Modaragam and Cheval-pars that really good fisheries are 
ever realized ; and even in regard to them, too often when 
all is most promising, millions and millions of oysters 
will suddenly disappear. If it can be any comfort to us 
our Indian neighbours have been much more unfortunate, 
a minute parasitic shell killing off holocausts of the 
oysters. And this reminds me of the theory which Capt. 
Phipps originated, which Mr. Thomas of the Madras Civil 
Service (the great fisherman) took up, and which the 
naturalists of the British Museum supported, that what 
had hitherto from all time been known as the spat of the 
pearl oyster, is the spat of quite a different shell ! All 
that Mr. Twynam, Capt. Donnan, and other experienced 
persons, natives as well as European, can say is, *^ Then 
we should like to see the real spat of the pearl oyster. 
Destructive criticism is ingenious, but where is the sub- 
stitute ? " The disputed spat has always preceded oysters 
on the banks. Messrs. Twynam and Donnan have seen 
the spat changing into oysters on long tall sea-weeds, and 
as those long weeds have died down, the spat has gone 

26 



886 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

-down, adhered to the coral, and become growing oysters. 
If experience is to be set aside, a more than Darwinian 
evolution mnst be substituted, and at present the opinion in 
"Ceylon is that all the old authorities were right, and that 
Oapt. Phipps, Mr. Thomas, and even a British Museum 
naturalist, are mistaken. Shellfish which grow in millions 
of millions must have spat in proportion, and in that 
case it must be apparent. But where is it apart from the 
old spat ? 

I must acknowledge a most interesting communication 
which has reached me from Capt. Donnan. It is to the 
following effect, the date being the 13th April : — 

" We are now working on the Cheval, having left the 
Matarakam on Saturday last, and if the weather keeps 
fine, of which there is every appearance at present, we 
shall do much better in the way of revenue than I ex- 
pected when I recommended the fishery. I have been 
ashore only once since you left You will remember that 
'Arab' diver with the nose nipper. Well, I had him 
alongside this morning, and told him to let mo see how 
long he could remain under water, and I carefully timed 
him, one minute and forty-nine seconds, which is the 
longest dive on record on these banks or beds. The other 
* Arab,' with air-pump and dress, only worked one day 
with it, when he only sent up 1,600 oysters, and now, 
without the dress, he is sending up from 2,600 to 3,000 
oysters per day ; so that the helmet, dress, and air-pump 
are not calculated to succeed at pearl- diving. I found 
also in 1884, off Chilaw, with four of Mr. Kyle's divers, 
that the natives sent up more oysters per day, man for 
man, than they did; a result which very much surprised 
me at the time, and now it has been confirmed again.*' 

It will be observed that the sorcalled *'Arab" diver, 
really a Hindu, from the Bombay Presidency, remained 
under water for a period extending to 109 seconds. I 
suspect that if sceptical criticism were brought to bear on 
the stories which allege subaqueous existence by divers 
for periods up to six minutes, this latest feat would be 
found to take rank amongst the most remarkable in the 
annals of diving where the diver has not been artificially 
supplied with air. No doubt the organs of the human 



The Ceylon Pearl Fisheries in 1887. 387 

body are capable of being educated by continued practice 
to endurance of abnormal conditions and of adaptation to 
sucb conditions : to tbose of extreme heat for instance, if 
gradually applied. I could, therefore, understand a man 
who commenced a diver's life, ** sound in wind and limb," 
obtaining gradually the power of remaining under water 
and repressing inspiration and respiration for two minutes, 
or at the very utmost two and a half. But those who know 
that the blood is the life, and that it must, as it circulates, 
be aerated, or lungs and heart will cease to act, will be 
slow to believe in a staying power under water of thr§e 
minutes, far less of six. The other " Arab " alluded to 
by Capt. Donnan had an imperfect diving dress which, it 
will be observed, was rather an encumbrance than a help 
to him as a regular diver, in which capacity he was only 
thoroughly successful when he abandoned the adventitious 
aid. Much service to the pearl fisheries of Ceylon was 
naturally expected from the class of European divers who, 
by means of external air supplied to them, can remain 
not minutes but hours under water. But the hopes 
entertained have not been realized. For the ordinary 
operations of rapidly collecting and bringing shells to the 
surface, a regular diving dress is as much of an impedi- 
ment as was Saul's armour to the shepherd lad who slew 
the giant with the simple weapons of a pebble from the 
brook projected by a sling. For exploring the banks and 
reporting on their condition, more might have reasonably 
been expected. But a thickly mailed and heavy-booted 
European diver, with seven to nine fathoms of water 
pressing on him, is no light entity to walk over and 
inevitably crush the colonies of molluscs. 

The stay under water in the case recorded by Capt. 
Donnan was twenty-seven seconds in advance of Sir 
Henry Ward's timing, twenty-six beyond our own, and 
sixteen in excess of the longest dive ever observed by Mr. 
Twynam. I have Captain Donnan's authority for saying 
that the period under water now observed by him is the 
longest on record in the annals of the Ceylon Pearl Fishery. 
Captain James Steuart, so long the Inspector of the Pearl 
Banks, and who collected so much information regarding 
them, never knew a diver to remain at the bottom longer 
than eighty-seven seconds, or to attain a greater depth than 
thirteen fathoms. Six minutes is the period mentioned 



888 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

in the '< Encyclopedia Britannica," latest edition, but as 
no authority is given I must remain sceptical. In the 
same article it is stated that, as the result of their trying 
vocation, the divers are short-lived. Here, also, I prefer 
the testimony of such largely-experienced and careful 
observers as Mr. Twynam and Capt. Donnan. The men, 
generally, make good earnings, live well, being nearly all 
meat-eaters, look well and have as good chances of pro- 
longed life as those who follow less hazardous occupations. 
One reason, no doubt, is that instead of any attempt to 
remain under water for prolonged periods, their average 
stay below is somewhat under rather than over one 
minute. With prolonged intervals to recover breath, to 
rest and tD sun themselves by the sides of the boats, 
(working as they do by relays) their labour hours, as far 
as diving is concerned, extend only to the seven or six 
and a half hours from daylight to one p.m. 



APPENDIX XX. 

ANUEADHAPUKA, THE ANCIENT CAPITAL OP 
CEYLON, AND ADJACENT EUINS AND TANKS, 
IN 1887. 

(From Letters to the ** Ceylon Observer,'* by A, M. Ferguson^ 

aM.G.) 

Anuradhapura, April llth, 1887. 
Hebe I am at length, in the greatest and most ancient of 
** the buried cities of Ceylon," which and the surrounding 
countries, away to the mountains of Matale and ''the 
Knuckles," I have looked over from the summit of the 
Miriswatte Dagoba ; the streets of which, including the 
**i'ia sacra,*' 1 have traversed, and the temples, palaces 
and baths of which I have examined, with intense interest, 
feeling as I looked on 

'* Those temples, monuments, and piles stupendous, 
Of which the very ruins are tremendous," 

that the half had not been told me. Yesterday I stood on 
the mound which tradition indicates as the site where one 
of the ** decisive battles of the world " was fought ; 
where the Tamil invader, Elala, fell to the sword of the 
Sinhalese monarch, Dutugemunu, and the tide of Damilo 
progress southwards was arrested— at least temporarily. 
For what power short of the ruin of European enterprise 
in Ceylcn, can arrest the southward flow, peaceful, but 
determined and constant, of the successors of the old South 
of India invaders ? The present Government of Ceylon, 
instead of resisting, has done and is doing all it can to 
welcome and encourage the influx of the Tamils who come 



390 Ceylon in ihe Jubilee Year. 

to exchange their labour for silver coin. Who can calcu- 
late the final results of this ebb and flow, but more flow 
than ebb 7 Even now the strength of the Tamil element 
in Ceylon, including, as essentially Tamils, the industrious 
and enterprising Moormen, is exceedingly strong, and it is 
daily growing. 

I have been six miles away to Mihintale, a dagoba- 
crowned rock, which we ascended by about two thousand 
steps, most of them separate blocks of stone, some cut in 
the rock. The ruins here are most interesting, and the 
views from the summit were beautiful. This was the 
favourite residence of Mahindo, who, about three centuries 
before Christ, introduced Buddhism to Ceylon. I lay on 
the stone bed on which he was wont to meditate and so 
secured great merit ! Over Mahindo's pokuna or bath 
there is sculptured a very curious five-heaJed cobra. But 
see Burrow's book.* 

Kalawbwa, Apnl 15th, 
This wonderful tank will be completed in October, 
and then send irrigation water down to Anuradhapura, 
fifty-four miles by the Yodiela (the giant's canal), and into 
the Kurunegala district. Mr. Wrightson walked with me 
this morning to see the enormous statue of Buddha, cut 
out of the solid rock, one of the largest things of its kind 
in the world. There is quite a town here, the people 
employed on the restoration being about six hundred, 
families and bazaars making up fully one thousand. 
The tank will be seven miles square, with twenty feet of 
water. 

Entering Anuradhapura on a dark night, after rain, all 
I was able to notice was the rush of the classical Malwatte, 
with myriads of bright-glancing fireflies on the forest trees. 
Next morning, when I looked out as daylight brightened 
the scene, I had for the chief object in my view the grand 
mass of the Jetawanarama dagoba. In the foreground, 
close to a raised bund, was a strip of water. This was all 
the Basawakulaba (curious interjection of a Tamil termi- 
nation into a city so essentially Sinhalese) had to show 
as a tank, and most of it was the result of the exception- 
ally heavy showers which had fallen in the first week of 

♦ '* The Buried Cities of Ceylon," by S. M. Burrows, CCS. Pub- 
lished by A. M. & J. Ferguson, Colombo, 1886. 



Anuradhapura in 1887. 



891 



April. When the waters of the Yodiela reach Anurad- 
hapura, as they will do within the next few days, I pre- 
sume Basawaknlam will receive the henefit of the supply, 
to the increased beauty and salubrity of the city, I should 
think. It is no use suggesting that the Tamil termination 
'< kulam " should be changed to the Sinhalese equivalent 
** wewa,'* for, however much it may be regretted, the 
ancient capital of the Sinhalese monarchy in Ceylon is 
likely as development goes on to become more Tamil than 
Sinhalese. 

When Kalawewa is completed and a lake of seven square 
miles stands above the forests and fields which stretch 
away to Anuradhapura, some readers may be surprised to 
learn that it will not only be the largest restored tank in 
Ceylon, but that it will rank with the largest in the world. 
Mr. Henry Parker in his elaborate Eoport on the Giant's 
Tank, written so far back as November, 1881, instituted a 
comparison which is now unjust to Kalawewa, inasmuch 
as its probable area was then taken at only 2,800 acres, or 
little more than half the real area of the tank as restored, 
which is 4,425 acres. Mr. Parker then under-estimated 
also the area of Padawiya, the largest tank in Ceylon, 
larger even than the Giant*s Tank. If his revised esti- 
mate, after examination of the locality, could be accepted, 
this Padawiya tank with 20,000 acres area would closely 
approach in extent the great Madras tank of Viranam, with 
its 22,000 acres extent. But, taking Mr. Parker's voDie 
moderate estimate of 10,000 acres for Padawiya, then 
Kalawewa in October next will rival this, and, perhaps, 
equal it, if the spiU is ultimately raised five feet. Mean- 
time, the corrected comparison of areas alone (capacity in 
millions of cubic feet being in a good many cases doubtful 
or unascertainable), is as follows : — 



Country. 

Madras 

Ceylon 

Do 

Madras 

Ceylon 

Do 

Do 

Do 

Bombay .... 

Madras 

Bombay .... 



Area in 

Besebyoir. Acres. 

Viranam 22,000 

Padawiya 10,000 

Giant's Tank 6,380 

Semprampakam. . . . 6,000 

Kalawewa 4,425 

Kanthalai 3,584 

Allai 3,000 

Bugam 3,000 

Sholapur 3,000 

BedHiU 1,600 

Vehar 1,394 



Bemares. 
Ancient. 
Estimated. 
As proposed. 
Estimated. 
Ascertained. 
As restored. 

do. 
Original tank. 
As enlarged. 

do. 
As constructed. 



892 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

Of tbe above tanks, Yehar, in the Bombay Presidency, 
and tbe Bed Hill reservoir above Madras (tbe bursting of 
which latter some years ago produced so much alarm, 
some loss of Hfe, and great inconvenience), are intended 
solely fcr the supply of water to the Presidency towns ; 
Madras 400,000 population and Bombay twice that num- 
ber. Tbe reservoir at Labugama, a sub-range of the 
Adam's Peak system, whence our chief city, with its 
120,000 inhabitants, is now supplied with water, covers 
176 acres. 

It is very curious to see how, in the course of ages, the 
south-west monsoon winds and rains have worn away the 
ends of the pinnacle platforms of the great Anuradhapura 
dagobas on which they have impinged, so that in some 
cases there is scarcely any projection on the western sides 
of the dagobas, the pinnacle appearing to rise from the 
western edge of a platform. The intention of Government 
at first, I believe, was merely to strengthen the top plat- 
form of the Abhayagiria dagoba so as to render it secure, 
but finally reconstruction, which is now considerably 
advanced, was resolved on, and but for the objection of the 
appearance of pandering to Buddhism, and the other that 
Ceylon has no money at present to spare on merely archsBO- 
logical purposes, no doubt the resolution would be com- 
mendable. For by means of a winding stone staircase 
which runs up through the interior of the platform, the 
summit can be attained, commanding a grand and varied 
view of the ruins of the ancient city, its tanks, its rice- 
fields, its forest surroundings, with many mountain ranges 
as backgrounds to the scenery. It was up this winding 
path, through the monkey-haunted jungle which now 
covers the ancient structure, that the prisoners employed 
had originally to carry the stone, lime, sand, and broken 
brick : all the materials and tools used in the restoration. 
It must have been hard work with a vengeance, as we can 
testify from merely walking up the steep path when the 
sun was shining hotly. 

The extensiveness of the road system and its ramifica- 
tions through the tank regions, involves a limit to the 
extent to which water can now be impounded and its level 
raised in such great tanks for instance as Kalawewa. An 
average of ten feet of water does not seem in proportion 
to a bund of sixty feet in height. But even so, an area of 



Anuradhapura m 1887. 893 

seven square miles will be permanently coveredi and if the 
spills were raised much beyond the five feet additional for 
'which provision has been made, the damage of submerging 
many miles of useful road would be real and great. Such 
considerations did not trouble Maha Sen, Waligambahu, 
Dhatu Sena, Prakramabahu and other great tank-builders, 
far less did they think of providing for the possibility of a 
railway line to connect the shipping port on the west of 
the island with the tank region of the north, its capital 
city. With reference to contingencies in the distant future 
our Government ought to get Mr. Wrightson to place on 
record his scheme of a- railway line which would not be a 
continuation of the line that has already reached Matale 
in its northern course ; but which, springing from Veyan- 
goda or Polgahawella, would reach Anuradhapura by a far 
easier and less costly course. A railway terminus in the 
shadow of our Ceylon pyramids, and in close contiguity to 
Elala's tomb and the thousand pillars of ** Brazen Palaces," 
** Halls of Audience," ** Baths** and "PaviUons," may 
seem wildly visionary ; but so at one time did the idea of 
a railway from the sea into the centre of the mountain 
region of Ceylon. So also was the restoration of Kalawewa 
once regarded ; but that is now, practically, an accom- 
plished fact, and thus the visionary ** castles in the air" 
of one generation become the substantial realities of suc- 
ceeding periods. For the present, however, what Anurad- 
hapura and the region around it want are irrigation water 
to facilitate — (to render possible, indeed) — the cultivation 
of rice, and good roads for the transport of surplus crops 
and the commodities received in exchange. 

Of the thousands of buildings which once existed, at 
Anuradhapura, at least, nearly all are prone with the 
earth, or hopelessly ruined, except the grand dagobas and 
the splendid baths, to which latter is unhappily attached 
the very uneuphonious name of 'pokuna. Next to the 
pyramid-dagobas in interest, and far more perfect in 
structure (except in the case of the repaired, we may say 
reconstructed, Thuparama), are the numerous and really 
beautiful baths of Anuradhapura, one of which, or rather 
two-in-one, a twin-bath or pokuna, is certainly amongst 
the most striking sights, and makes one of the finest pic- 
tures, in the ancient capital. It is exceedingly picturesque 
in its semi-ruinous condition, the steps being displaced as 



894 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

by an earthquake shake, and lying in admired confusion, 
though none are broken, and few even chipped. This 
beautiful work could at slight expense be restored, and by 
means of Yodiela water from Tissawewa, be converted into 
what we suspect the Buddhist priest-worshipping kings 
never could or would have contemplated, a public swim- 
ming bath, to which others than members of the royal 
family and of the priesthood would be admitted. In the 
prominence of its baths, ancient Anuradhapura reminded 
me of ancient Borne, where the finest maidenhair ferns 
flourish in the Baths of Nero and Garacalla. But there is 
one great difference, and it scores in favour of the Budd- 
hist kings. The insane and wicked ambition of the 
CsBsars was for each to use the bath or palace of his 
predecessor merely as the foundation on which to erect a 
structure after his own fancy and in honour of himself. 
In the Italian city, therefore, we have the superimposed 
remains of baths, doubly ruined ; by the instincts of insen- 
sate ambition, originally, and then by the hands of time 
and vandalism. But no similar idea seems ever to have 
crossed the mind of Sinhalese monarchs. There was 
plenty of space, and each king in choosing a new site and 
constructing a new ablution-tank (we hope the word 
pokuna will be outlawed and driven to take refuge in the 
rock fastnesses of Sigiri), merely strove to excel in elegance 
of structure and capacity the bath of his predecessor. He 
who constructed the twin-bath ought to have his name, if 
it could be ascertained, associated with one of the finest 
remains in the ancient capital of Ceylon, and one of the 
most beautiful things of its kind in the world. Photo- 
graphs give a fair idea of the twin-tanks of stone, their 
exquisitely-carved balustrades and their flights of steps, 
but it is worth taking a journey to Anuradhapura to 6ee 
and stand in admiration beside the '^ Kuttam pokuna," the 
largest division of which is 182 feet long by 60 feet wide, 
the descent being, we should say, at least 80 feet. It is a 
truly noble and elegant structure, every stone of which is 
almost as perfect as the day it was hewn. The qualifying 
question arises, for whose use was this magnificent bath 
provided ? It lies in suspicious proximity to the Jetawa- 
narama dagoba, which is said to have been built by Maha 
Sen, about the close of the third century of our era, to 
commemorate his reconversion to ortliodox Buddhism 



Anuradhapura in 1887. 395 

(whatever that was) from the Wytuliam heresy (whatever 
that may have been). Having built a shrine so enormous, 
it was only befitting that the repentant monarch should 
provide for the hordes of priests attached to it baths of pro- 
portionate size. We could scarcely restrain our burning 
indignation as we found that object after object of archsBO- 
logical interest resolved itself, on inquiry, into something 
for the honour, convenience, and pampering of one of the 
most utterly useless systems of priestcraft that ever cursed 
humanity. Amongst the wonders of Anuradhapura are 
some large stone canoes, and it is believed that even these 
were constructed to hold food for the priests. Similar care 
was taken to provide monolithic vessels for the dyeing of 
the priestly robes, and to quote Burrows : — ** "Wide dis- 
tricts, fertilized, perhaps, by the interception of a river and 
the formation of suitable canals, were appropriated to the 
use of the local priesthood ; a tank, with the thousands of 
acres it watered, was sometimes assigned for the perpetual 
repairs of a dagoba." The depth, of subserviency was 
reached when a monarch devoted himself and his family 
as slaves to the priesthood ; but this was too much even 
for Sinhalese public opinion, Buddhists as the people 
were. To look for remains of residences of the common 
people amidst the ruins of Anuradhapura seems hopeless : 
they built with mud, and roofed with leaves. But surely 
the monarchs and nobles had their palaces and their 
baths ? We certainly do hear of ** the queen's palace," 
and'* the king's palace," and of * pavilions," but even 
regarding these, the qualifying remark has to be made that 
the buildings.were probably •* shrines ; " and what is cer- 
tain is that nine-tenths at least of the existing ruins of 
Anuradhapura, once a great city covering an area of 256 
square miles (Colombo is spread over only 11), are identi- 
fied as the remains of buildings devoted to the custody of 
doubtful relics of an arch-atheist and pessimist, and to the 
delectation of holy beggars who taught that there is no 
God, no soul, no immortality ; only extinction of sentient 
existence by the practice of unnatural and impossible 
austerities, and by honouring a non-existent being called 
Buddha, and bestowing bounty on his very exigent ** men- 
dicant " priests. 

The calculation which Tenuent makes regarding the 
mass of materials in the Jetawanarama dagoba shows 



896 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year* 

what might have been done for the people, or what the 
people might have been led to do for themselves, had fair 
play been extended to them by the kings and nobles and 
priests who lived only or mainly for their own aggrandize- 
ment. The Jetawanarama dagoba, built by Maha Sen 
about 275 a.d., was originally 816, and is still 249, feet 
high, so that the summit is nearly 600 feet above sea-leveL 
Neither the priests nor the Government entertain any de- 
sign of *' restoring " this vast mass, but no doubt an easy 
path to the top will be added to the many fine drives and 
walks for which Anuradhapura is now distinguished, and 
which renders it so different a place to that into which 
Skinner and MacCaskill cut their way through dense 
jungle somewhat more than half a century ago. The 
diameter of the great Jetawanarama dagoba is 860 feet, 
and Tennent estimated the contents of the whole at 20 
miUions of cubic feet. He added : ** Even with the facili- 
ties which modern invention supplies for eccmomizing 
labour, the building* of such a mass would at present 
occupy 500 bricklayers from 6 to 7 years, and would in- 
volve an expenditure of at least a million sterling. The 
materials are sufficient to raise 8,000 houses, each with 20 
feet frontage, and these would form thirty streets half a 
mile in length. They would construct a town the size of 
Ipswich or Coventry ; they would hne an ordinary railway 
tunnel 20 miles long, or form a wall 1 foot thick and 10 
feet high reaching from London to Edinburgh.** When it 
is remembered that, apart from purely stone ruins, some 
five times the mass of materials (chiefly fine large flat 
bricks, tens of thousands of which have resisted outrage 
and time), when it is considered that materials multipHed 
at least by five times enter into similar structures at 
Anuradhapura, some idea can be formed of the fearful 
misapplication of materials and labour which took place 
in honour of a false faith and a parasite priesthood at the 
ancient city. As in the case of the Medici and St. Peter's 
at Bome (a grand building, but more a shrine of idolatry 
than Christianity), love of art, devotedness to Aesthetic 
beauty, will be pleaded, and no doubt the ancient monarchs 
of Anuradhapura were some of them men of as good taste 
as Sir William Gregory described the last bloody and 
murderous tyrant of Kandy to be. He compelled Ehela- 
pola's wife to pound the head of her own child in a mortar, 



Anuradhapura in 1887. 397 

bat, as a set-ofi^ he formed the beantifal Kandy lake and 
built its &ie bund- wall If the dates usually given can be 
accepted, it is curious that Thuparama dagoba (moderate 
in size when compared with the pyramids of Jetawana- 
rama, Buanwelli, Abhayagiria, and Mirisiawatte) is not 
only one of the most ancient buildings in India, but one 
of the most elegant in design. Buskin may rant and rave 
against stucco and whitewash, but there can be no ques- 
tion that the restored Thuparama, with its snow-white, 
bell-shaped, pointed form, contrasted with the ancient 
monoliths and ruins, and the umbrageous trees and green- 
sward amidst which it rises, is ** a thing of beauty." In 
shape it is now a perfect contrast to the top-heavy mass 
shown in the works of Forbes and Fergusson ; and the 
appearance of Thuparama as merely whitewashed, helps 
to a vivid realization of how beautiful the great pyramid 
dagobas must have looked when, covered with fine polished 
chunam, their vast masses gleamed white against the sky. 
But the glories and the gems of Thuparama and of Anurad- 
hapura (although we do not forget our admiration of the 
baths) are the monolithic, capital-crowned pillars which 
stand upright or at various angles of inclination around. 
The Thuparama dagoba, built originally, so the Maha- 
wanso asserts, in 807 b.o. (and if so, it is certainly the 
oldest building in all India), was damaged by the Mala- 
bars, and has been several times repaired, and lately 
restored. But the exquisitely proportioned monoliths are 
here intact, and if they were hewn and the capitals sculp- 
tured, as seems certain, nearly twenty-two centuries ago, 
then certainly the ancient founders of Anuradhapura had 
the principles of true art and the sense of true beauty 
developed in a remarkable degree. Nothing strikes a 
visitor to the quadrangle in which stands the sacred bo 
tree more than the complete but most pleasing contrast 
between the umbrageous expanses of the Indian figs and 
the tall, rounded, perfectly straight, cylindrical stems of 
the palmyra palms, each crowned with its capital of clus- 
tered leaves. As I looked on these classically beautiful 
trees I could not help the reflection that here were the 
natural models on which the long slender pillars around 
Thuparama were formed. The palm, so prevalent now, 
must have existed in those early ages ; and even if artists 
from India formed the transcendently elegant pillars, we 



398 Ceylon in the Jvhilee Year. 

must remember that over large portions of India tlie pal- 
myra palm {horassm fldbeUtformis) is a familiar object. 
The beauty and utility of ^e palmyra palm is scarcely 
appreciated as it ought to be. Those who have seen only 
dense groves of stiff-looking trees in the peninsula of Ja&a 
can scarcely in^agine the tall growth and noble proportions 
of the single specimens in the rich soil of the bo tree 
quadrangle at Anuradhapura. As a timber tree for roof- 
ing purposes the palmyra is well known and valued for its 
extreme lasting powers. For cabinet-making purposes it 
is not much used, because, probably, of the difficulty of 
working it. But old wood rightly treated is scarcely, if at 
all, inferior to ebony. Mr. Alexander, the forester of the 
North Central Province, took a polished stem to the Edin- 
burgh Forestry Exhibition, which was universally admired 
as *' black marble." The pillars at Thuparama, as well as 
the thousands of others scattered, erect or prone, around 
the many and in some cases vast dagobas of Anuradhapura 
had for object the defining of processional circuits, round 
and round which hundreds of thousands of successive 
bands of pilgrims paced, all down the centuries, in order 
to obtain ** merit," and of this surely the poor simple 
people, with their devout instincts, ought to have obtained 
a large store, seeing that Thuparama enclosed the veritable 
collarbone of Buddha, while close by, in another shrine, 
was the still more sacred canine tooth of the Bhodisat, the 
sage, in Gaelic Bodach, an old man, as Oaielach (Tamil, 
Kalevi) means an old woman. 

From the calculation that ancient Anuradhapura, with 
its area of 256 square miles (including gardens, tanks, and 
cultivated fields), had a population of a quarter of a million, 
the descent is extreme to Fergusson's statement, in the 1876 
edition of his work, that the site of the city was then 
entirely deserted and its vicinity closed in with almost 
impenetrable jungle. Even when that sentence was 
written, the clearing, road-formation, tank and canal re- 
storation, and general revival, which have now made such 
extensive progress, had been commenced, and were well 
forward. We have noticed that Anuradhapura is a perfect 
centre of highways, radiating away to the Northern, 
Eastern, North- Western, and Central Provinces, and so 
to the west and south of the island, while there are few 
out-station towns in Ceylon better supplied with local 



Anuradhapura in 1887. 899 

driving roads and paths. This advantage is, of course, 
largely due to the desire of the authorities to render access 
to the antiquities of the place facile to travellers and 
visitors. We believe we mentioned in a previous letter 
that, besides the Government principal and minor roads, 
a large mileage of what are called ** green roads '* has 
been cleared by the natives. These roads have to wait for 
bridges, culverts, and gravelling, but meantime they are 
traversable by carriages and carts in the dry season (seven 
or eight months out of the twelve), and by foot-passengers 
all the year round. 

From houses in the town we heard as we entered after 
dark and on subsequent days, the notes of music and the 
sounds of song and hymn, such as are common to the 
civilization of a century later by 2,000 years than that in 
which the town named after the constellation Anuradha 
was founded, while rays of light from lamps fJled with 
kerosene, imported from a western world then undreamt 
of, vied in brightness with the phosphorescence of myriads 
of fireflies hovering over the vegetation which clothes the 
sides of the Malwatte oya. The present population of 
revived Anuradhapura, including, it must be admitted, 
large proportions of active Tamils and enterprisiug Moor- 
men, must be fully 2,000, the promising nucleus of an 
aggregation of humanity which in the ages to come may 
equal, and even surpass, the hundreds of thousands who 
lived and loved and fought the battle of life and died on 
its fields in the ages that have gone into the eternity of 
the past. If after October next, when the scheme of tanks, 
canals, sluices, and spills between the grand tank of Eala- 
wewa and the town reservoirs of Tissa, Abhaya, and the 
supply channels which lead from them to houses and 
fields, are all complete and fully at work, then if the 
population of what is now Anuradhapura, and of the area 
over which it once extended, does not increase in almost 
geometrical ratio, all ordinary human calculations must 
be deemed valueless. 

There is, I believe, some evidence amongst the ruins of 
Anuradhapura of colours having been used in designs and 
ornamentation, and it seems quite probable that the fine 
white lime stucco which at one time covered not only the 
brickwork of the dagobas, but rough stone-work, such as 
the pillars of the Brazen Temple, may have been elabo- 



400 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

rately frescoed. In sucli frescoes, had any survived the 
ravages of time and of ruthless human destructiveness, 
the author of tree and serpent worship might have hoped 
to find the tree which, in support of his theory, ought to 
have accompanied the serpents on the sculptures. Or he 
probably thought the nagas and trees, in due proximity, 
were painted on the ** curtains,** which he conjectures 
were hung between the processional pillars, successive 
circles of which surrounded Thuparama and the other 
dagobas. But if that was the case, it is surely curious 
that the conjunction was not perpetuated in the Eock 
Temple and ordinary wihara frescoes. As far as my 
observation has gone, representations of trees are not 
common on the walls of Ceylon wiharas, and I can 
recollect no case of tree and serpent, together or separ- 
ately, represented as objects of worship. Amidst the 
elaborate frescoes of the rock cave temple of Dambulla 
I do not remember any picture of a tree, although the 
artist, in reproducing the marine landscape connected 
with a ship conveying the branch of the sacred bo to 
Ceylon, shows his sense of proportion by representing 
the fishes in the sea as considerably excelling in size the 
ships I But I must leave this question of the presence or 
absence of evidence in Ceylon of the former prevalence of 
tree and serpent worship to professed oriental scholars 
who have made the subject a special study. I am merely 
an outsider, scarcely entitled to ** benefit of clergy,** re- 
lating the impressions made on my mind by what I have 
seen and read. According to Fergusson, the beautifully 
sculptured moonstones, the design of which — elephant, 
Hon, horse, bull, hanza, lotus, and frieze — ^remained un- 
changed for fifteen centuries, are peculiar to Ceylon I 
This certainly looks like indigenous art. What are called 
** pavilions** at Anuradhapura, a name given, I believe, 
by Mr. Dickson, Fergusson supposes were ** preaching 
halls ** connected with dagobas ; so that the more we 
investigate, the more it becomes evident that all or nearly 
all the grand lithic remains of buildings at the ancient 
city, as well as the mainly brick pagodas, were devoted to 
the glorification of Buddhism and the convenience of its 
so-called ** priests,*' who were bound by the laws of their 
order to spend their lives in meditation and self-denial. 
But we know how mediaeval Christian monks interpreted 



Anuradhapura in 1887. 401 

tbeir **vows of poverty." The Buddhist mendicants of 
our day who hold and misuse such large ** temporalities " 
have certainly the merit of being true to the traditions of 
twenty centuries. The dagobas contained ** bushels " of 
relics, but it is singular that the only relic ever publicly 
exhibited in the past or now is the so-called tooth. The 
saintly Tissa {*' a sair saint to the croon'') is said to have 
been privileged above all laymen by being admitted to see the 
relics contained in the inner sanctum of the holiest of the 
great dagobas, and he was doubtless correspondingly edified. 
We do not read that he worshipped the relics, however ; 
for Buddhist idolatry was evidently long posterior to the 
early age in which he flourished. It was, however, in 
full force when the second ancient capital of Ceylon 
was founded. Fergusson, indeed, regards Polonaruwa as 
specially interesting from this fact, that it is full of the 
idolatry of Buddhism, having been founded after Buddhism 
had become extinct in India. Interest of another kind 
attaches to this city of Prakrama (which I was very sorry 
not to be able to visit), from the fact that the Sat Mahal 
Prasada, so conspicuous amongst its wonderfully perfect 
buildings, is the lineal descendant of Birs Nimroud of 
Assyria. There is indeed nothing more curious and in- 
teresting in the great work on Indian Architecture than 
the mode in which the influence, first of Babylonia and 
Nineveh, and then of Greece and Kome, is traced by the 
erudite author in much of the architecture of India and 
Ceylon ; while at the same time there is a great deal that 
is quite original and indigenous. To Fergusson we are 
also indebted for the calculation that the Brazen Palace 
at Anuradhapura, when complete (according to the plan 
of gradually diminishing stories, which alone he believed 
to be possible), vied with the simple but majestic Anurad- 
hapura dagobas in height, and was equal to the most 
elevated of the great English cathedrals. In noticing the 
surpassingly elegant pillars of Thuparama I ought to have 
mentioned their resemblance to the 'Mats'' of India, on 
which the edict of Asoka and other monarchs are inscribed, 
and which again seem to have influenced the form of the . 
minarets in Saracenic architecture. But I must no longer 
linger amidst the ruins of Anuradhapura further than to 
express my agreement with the conviction that the choice 
of the place as the capital of the Wijayan conquerors was 

27 



402 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

largely influenced by the fact that Mihintale, with its 
rock caves and boulder plateaux, was already a scene of 
religious worship before the immigrants from northern 
India conquered the indigenous Yakho race, and before 
the apostles of the new philosophy of negation bound con- 
querors and conquered in the chains of their godless and 
cheerless, if plausible, creed. The same fact, probably, of 
the rock caves being sacred to demon or naga worship 
influenced Mahindo, son of the great Asoka, in choosing 
Mihintale as his residence when he came to introduce 
Buddhism in the second century b.c., his sister soon fol- 
lowing with the branch of the sacred Bo. 

I now proceed to notice some other rock temples beyond 
the precincts of Anuradhapura. Within those precincts 
are a good many curious examples, the most striking being 
that close to Tissawewa, Isurumaniya, to wit, which, ex- 
isting as a shrine from 3Q0 b.o., if we can accept the native 
dates, presents now a most incongruous combination of 
natural magnitude of rock, ancient sculpture, and exqui- 
site stone carving, and the most tawdry modern ornamen- 
tation of glaring paint and toy-Uke shrines and bogging 
boxes. As a whole, Isurumaniya, with its combination of 
Buddhism, Hinduism, and (there can be little doubt, of a 
cult which preceded both) demon-worship with the physi- 
cal symbol of the serpent, presents one of the most curious 
problems of the mysterious ancient city of the " dead 
past." 

From Kalawewa I was able to visit a rock temple, the 
Aukuna wihara, which, though not very ancient when 
compared with some of the monuments of Anuradhapura, 
is certainly very interesting. The sight of the solemn, 
colossal figure of Buddha carved from the solid rock, one 
of a series of huge vertical strata, was well worth the 
journey. Although the protecting porch which once 
covered the figure no longer exists, every well- executed 
detail is in as perfect preservation as when the statue was 
sculptured by order of Parakrama Bahu nearly 700 years 
ago. Purposely, no doubt, the figure — which is in good 
proportion and good taste, 40 feet high, with feet 72 
inches in length — faces the great tank. Without a par- 
ticle of sympathy with Buddhist idolatry, we can distin- 
guish between that foul sin and the true art thrown into 
the pose and repose of this grand figure. When I said 



Anuradhapura in 1887. 403 

that every detail was complete, I ought to have added that 
the flame ornament (answering to the nimbus of Christian 
art *) which ought to be on the head of the figure, lies 
beside it. There is also the inevitable cobra carved on a 
slab, but no representation of a tree or any approach to it. 
It was the solitary priest of the wihara connected with the 
rock statue who insisted that the English engineer engaged 
in the restoration of Kalawewa was an incarnation of one 
of the ancient tank-building giants. Mr. Wrightson adds 
to his other accompUshments that of photographer, and 
amongst his collection was the likeness of another similar 
colossal rock statue of Buddha, but, he believes, of more 
ancient date. It stands 41 feet high, at Seperawa. Fer- 
gusson, however, in noticing photographs taken by Captain 
Hogg, E.E., remarks that these statues are extremely 
similar to one another, and, except in dimensions, to that 
at the Gal wihara in Polonaruwa. The few figures of 
Buddha unearthed at Anuradhapura looked poor and 
. dilapidated when compared with the fresh-looking ** ruins" 
of stone monuments, older than the statues by many cen- 
turies. The statues of monarchs there, at the Dambulla 
Epck Temple, and elsewhere, are, I suppose, as authentic 
likenesses as are the pictures at Holyrood of the long line 
of mythical or doubtful Scottish kings, from ** Fergus the 
First " onwards. 

On my way back from Kalawewa to the central road, 
Mr. Wrightson's kindness enabled me to visit the specially 
interesting ruins of Vigittapura, a city said to have been 
founded at an earlier date even than Anuradhapura by 
one of the six brothers of Wijayo's Indian Queen. There 
is the inevitable dagoba, which we ascended, admiring, as 
a bright contrast to the surrounding ruins of long past 
ages, the pretty wild flowers which brightened its sides. 
From the top we had a good view of the ruins of wiharas 
and fortress defences, which we could not, for want of time, 
examine in detail. It was certainly interesting to look on 
pillars and slabs hewn probably over twenty-three centuries 
ago ; for the Mahawanso, quoted by Burrows, states that 
the settlement of Prince Vigitta was a city and fortress 

* So close is the analogy between the architecture, image?, and 
ritual of Buddhism with those of the Komish Church, that the Abbe 
Hue expressed the conviction that the devil had used Buddhism to 
cast disoredit on ** the Church.** 



404 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

** snrrounded by a triple battlement and entered by a gate 
of iron I ** when Anuradhapura was but a village. There 
axe inscriptions here in the Nagara character, and besides 
the remains in the cleared space, the jungle around 
(specially pestiferous) is said to be '' strewn with ruins.** 
Somewhere near one of the four ** altars ** of the dagoba 
on which we stood and looked over the site of one of 
earth's most ancient cities and fortresses, Buddha's jaw- 
bone is said to be hidden. In hearing of such '' bushels 
of relics ** one is inclined to be irreverent enough to ask 
how many jawbones the sage ascetic was possessed of. 
Yigittapura is famous for the incidents of its siege more 
than 2,000 years ago. The city, founded by Gautama 
Buddha's cousin, b.o. 500, had, in b.c. 168, fallen into the 
possession of Mysorean invaders, and was held by a captain 
of Elala, the Damilo monarch or usurper. 

Dhutugamunu conquered this fortress with others before 
liis final and decisively successful battle and single combat 
with Ellala at Anuradhapura. Forbes, quoting from the 
Mahawanso, gives the following animated account of the 
siege : 

" The assault having been determined on, Kadol, the 
famed war elephant of the Singalese prince, was directed 
against the eastern gate, up to which he rushed through a 
shower of weapons and weighty stones that were hurled at 
him on his near approach to the walls. On reaching the 
entrance, a party of the besieged who were stationed over 
the gate commenced pouring down molten lead, which, 
falling on the elephant, he became ungovernable, and fled 
to shelter himself in a small tank near the walls. Kadol's 
wounds having been dressed, and his body fortified against 
similar attacks by cloths thickly folded and shielded over 
with plates of copper, he was again brought to the assault, 
and succeeded in forcing the gate, at the same time that 
others of the assailants entered by a breach in the walls 
of the fortaress.'* 

On the morning after I had visited the romantic ruins 
of Yigittapura, apparently the most ancient in Ceylon, 
apart from the rock caves, I stood on the great gneiss 
rock of Dambulla, and enjoyed the extensive and varied 
view of successive mountain and vast forested plains. 



Anuradhapura in 1887. 405 

brightened by glimpses of streams and tanks and rioe 
fields. 

I do not wonder that Mr. Campbell, of Islay, was 
struck with the appearance of the gneiss of which the 
great rock of DambuUa is formed; for the crystallized 
strata, worn away and polished on the rounded sides of 
the rock, look as if Nature had tried her artist hand in 
adorning the mass with engraved serpentine designs and 
striations, beautiful in themselves and bearing the most 
curious resemblance to hieroglyphic inscriptions. Would 
that this natural alphabet could tell us somewhat of the 
date, or rather successive dates, of the metamorphic rock, 
and the mode of formation of its vast caverns. But while, 
with the utter absence of marine remains, we have in exis- 
tence, potent as ever, agencies which sufficiently account 
for the production of the phenomena we are examining, I 
see no reason to suppose that these are ocean-caves formed 
by the beating of billows against the sides of the rock and 
eroding its softer portions away through countless geolo- 
gical ages. All through those ages, doubtless, existed and 
operated the same air-ocean of moisture waves driven by 
wind currents which exists and operates in our day. 
Apart from any tilting and dividing processes to which 
the strata may have been subjected, and which may have 
separated them widely, the effects of milHons of monsoon 
storms on decomposing rock, aided finally by the agency 
of man with his splitting wedges and hewing hammers 
and chisels, sufficiently account for the series of yawning 
caves which have rendered the rock of DambuUa famous. 

The stratified and contorted character of the rock ac- 
counts for the water which ' percolates down from the 
summit into one of the caves, to which, as of mysterious 
origin, the priests draw the attention of visitors, and which 
is treasured and considered as sacked as Ganges water is in 
India. I did not taste the heaven-born fluid, any more 
than I did the contents of a lakelet in a depression of the 
vast rock, a rock stated by Tennent to be 500 feet in 
height and about 2,000 feet in length. 

As was natural to an accomplished enthusiast like Islay 
Campbell, it was not for his geological theories alone he 
sought support amidst the cave recesses in the great gneiss 
rock of DambuUa. In the elaborate and richly-coloured 
frescoes by which the stone roofs of the caves are covered 



406 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

and adorned he sought evidences of identity with the 
northern folklore which he had studied so deeply and 
illustrated so happily. He had heard of the giants as 
well as the demons of Sinhalese folklore, and, considering 
how many theories have been founded on the supposed 
identity ' in Indian literature of the Yavans with the 
Ionian s, we cannot wonder that the accomplished savant 
of Islay saw more than a verbal similarity between the 
Yodi of the Sinhalese and the Odin of the Scandinavian 
pantheon of deified heroes. 



APPENDIX XXI. 

EEFERENCE TO FRONTISPIECE. 

The inscription on the statue to Governor Sir William 
Gregory tells its own story to some extent, but it may be 
added that a sum of about E25,000 was subscribed by all 
classes — chiefly by Ceylonese, and especially the Sinhalese 
section — for the erection of the statue. It was executed 
by F. Boehm, A.R.A. It is erected in the Cinnamon 
Gardens, in front of the Colombo Museum — the most 
interesting and most generally useful, as well as hand- 
somest, public building erected in Ceylon during British 
times. The conception, arrangments, and carrying out of 
this museum were entirely due to Governor Gregory. 
He had for his architect Mr. J. G. Smither, F.R.I.B.A. 
The structure, laying out of grounds, and surrounding 
wall, cost about ^612,000. The museum is occupied 
entirely with Ceylon exhibits, and presents a very adequate 
display in all departments, and especially interesting 
archsBological exhibits refering to the early days of the 
Kandyan Kingdom. An oriental library occupies one 
part of the building, and the Ceylon branch of the Royal 
Asiatic Society holds its meetings in an adjoining room. 
The natives of all classes and races visit the museum in 
great numbers, and it is a centre of attraction to visitors 
— passengers landing at Colombo— from all quarters. 

THE COLOMBO MUSEUM. 

{By a Ceylon writer in 1882.) 

''If want of interest in local exhibitions was not so commonly 
observable amongst the residents of almost all the principal towns 



408 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

and cities of the civilized world, it might, perhaps, be considered 
remarkable that so few of the European residents of Colombo take any 
interest in thebeantifol mnseum which stands so prominently amongst 
the buildings in the Cinnamon Gardens. It is merely another phase 
of the principle involved in the assertion that a prophet is not without 
honour, save in his own country and his own father*s house. Our . 
museum is by far the most beautiful building in Colombo: it is 
pleasantly situated, and surrounded by prettily cultivated grounds ; 
it is, moreover, replete with objects of local interest, and entrance is 
free to all. And yet, with all these attractions, there is scarcely one 
in a hundred of us who has done himself the pleasure of paying a 
visit to the building, or, if he has, it was, in all probability, several 
years ago, or when the collection of specimens was of such a meagre 
and rudimentary nature as to scarcely merit the name of collection 
at all. In those days, possibly, visitors may have been justified in 
making use of such expressions as < really, there is nothing worth 
seeing or worth the trouble of a visit * ; but at the present day the 
visitor would indeed be hard to please who could not find many objects 
in which he takes an interest, or which are calculated to attract his 
attention. In spite of many difficulties, the lukewarmness of the 
anUiorities, the inefficiency, if not worse, of the assistants, the 
active opposition of the few, and the discouraging callousness of the 
many, and in spite of the disappointment which must necessarily 
arise from want of intelligent interest in the work by the greater 
number of tiie European community, the curator, with the aid of 
great industry and an affectionate interest in his work, has succeeded 
in getting together a very goodly show wherewith to minister to the 
amusement and instruction of those who make the museum a pleasur- 
able resort. 

"The collection — entirely of an insular character — already comprises 
such a number of interesting specimens, that the scanty half -hour 
of an afternoon, which is generally all that most residents can afford 
for the purpose before the doors are closed at six p.m., is all too 
short for even a casual glance at one-half of them, much less a care- 
ful examination ; and we would advise any one who really wishes to 
see the museum thoroughly, and acquire a knowledge of what it con- 
tains, to take it in instalments at their leisure, as opportunity offers. 
Inspection of the contents of the lower room might well occupy the 
whole of the first visit, whilst there need be no waste of time if the 
gallery is to be got through in an hour and a half. In writing this 
we must not be understood to be addressing the passengers from the 
steamers in the harbour who want to see all Colombo in the after- 
noon, travel to Eandy during the night, drive round the town before 
the seven o'clock train leaves, and be on board ship again by noon, 
having learnt all about Ceylon, and a great deal more besides, in less 
than twenty-four hours ; and yet we are assured that out of the 
9,062 Europeans who during the past year have visited the museum, the 
greater number are visitors from the shipping. There can be but 
little doubt that the exhibition has been subjected to one very serious 
drawback during past years, and that is the constant state of change 
in detail and arrangement which have occupied the officials so 
incessantly. 

*' Complaints were rife of empty cases, and lack of specimens, and 
the justness of such complaints could not well be gainsaid ; but it 



Reference to Frontispiece. 409 

was an nnfortiinate state of affairs which has absolutely necessitated, 
as experience proved, the utility of change of position, or as the 
growth of the collection called for more accommodation. The extra- 
ordinary dilatoriness of the Public Works Department has, without 
doubt, done much to injure the good fame of the museum, and even 
now there are a very great number of specimens which are lying idle 
in the store-rooms for want of cases in which they could be exhibited ; 
and with the transport vote cut down as it is to half the usual 
amount, and altogether inadequate to the necessities of the case, 
there seems to be little hope of progress in the immediate future. 
This transport vote, we may explain, provides for all the cost of 
ooUection by the curator and his assistants, taxidermists and peons, 
cart and coolie hire, tolls and canoes, and travelling expenses, pur- 
chase of specimens, <&c., &c., and, when it is reduced as it has been 
to such an insignificant amount, the resources of the collector's 
establishment are entirely crippled, and progress most effectually 
stayed. There have been many critics from time to time who have 
not been backward in attributing blame to the curator, when, had 
they only been aware of the true state of the case, they would, without 
doubt, have been astonished that so much has been done with so little 
in the way of support. Lately, however, very considerable changes 
have taken place in the arrangement of the collection, many of 
them most advantageous, whilst some, we think, will have again to be 
altered. The entrance hall, once crowded with gigantic fishes, 
requires something to do away with the idea of emptiness which 
cannot fail to strike a visitor, whilst the two bare benches which are 
placed in it are by no means aBsthetic in appearance. The west room 
on the ground floor, known as the Ceylon Products' room, has much 
that is new, and more is promised. Zoology has been relegated 
entirely to the upper story, save the new fish room, to which we shall 
further allude presently, and the minerals have been brought down- 
stairs. These have been very cleverly placed in cases against the 
wall, and make a very interesting show, though necessarily there 
must in time be many more specimens collected, until eventually 
they will require a room entirely devoted to mineralogy. Perhaps 
the most interesting exhibit in thi& section is the series of fossil 
deposits showing the formation of the west coast of the island, from 
Dondra-Head on the south, to Karativo on the north-west coast. 
There are also many specimens of sea shells taken from the forests 
of the Northern Province, and a piece of fossil coral (if we may be 
allowed to make use of such an expression) from the summit of 
Tangala Hill, say, 150 feet above the sea level. This room, having 
now been rendered secure with iron bars, the gold Buddhas and 
jewellery, which had been placed in safety after the disappearance of 
a portion of them, as well as the collection of coins, are now ex- 
hibited again in central cases. The new arrangment of the coins is 
especially happy, and this part of the collection looks peculiarly neat 
and appropriate. The exhibition of Ceylon products is at present in- 
significant and altogether unworthy of the institution, but this want 
wUl happily be very shortly amended on the arrival of the two hundred 
samples which are to come from the Indian and Colonial Exhibition 
in London. These will all be shewn in goblet-shaped bottles, and 
will, without doubt, look very well. They will be supplemented, it is 
hop 2d, by contributions supplied by the principal producers in the 



410 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

island. Perhaps the most interesting specimen at present on view 
is a sample of clean coffee, exhibited by the Messrs. G. & M. Worms 
at the London Exhibition of 1851. This m \j be regarded as a curious 
relic rather than an object of any special value. The Exhibition 
itself is seldom alluded to in the present day, except as the father of 
all the exhibitions which have been so numerous in all parts of the 
world of late years, and the memory of the Messrs. Worms is fast 
fading away, except in the recollections of a few of our older 
colonists. 

** We must not omit to make mention of another innovation in the 
conduct of the museum, which has its first results in the Ceylon 
Products' Boom. This is the admission of loan collections, which it 
has at length been decided to accept for exhibition when opportunity 
offers. The first to avail himself of the permission has been Mr. D. 
W. DeAbrew Bajapakse, who has sent a tortoise-shell box and 
Sinhalese gentleman's comb, several ancient native swords, and two 
Mudaliyar's caps of the Dutch period, say, about 1790. It is to be 
hoped that other disinterested individuals will follow suit, and let the 
public of Ceylon have a sight of the treasures of many kinds which 
are at present hidden away in ancient almirahs in the recesses of the 
native walawas. Before we pay a visit to the galleries, we mu3t not 
forget to mention the newly-fitted room at the back of the museum, 
which has been opened to the public as a fish room, in which are 
shown nearly all the great stuffed fishes which at one time or other 
have been seen in the hall or the gallery. In fact, they are all here 
except the gigantic shark, which still remains in the east gallery, and of 
which we shall have more to say by and by. The fish room is the 
first practical illustration of the necessity which is beginning to be 
felt for more accommodation, and it will not be very long before an 
additional building on a considerable scale will be urgently called for. 
In the meantime, visitors wishing to see the fish room, should ask 
one of the attendants to show them the way, and they cannot fail to 
gain some knowledge of the monsters which people the Eastern 
waters. The smaller fishes and the crustaceans and other marine 
wonders will be met with upstairs." — Communicated to Ceylon Times, 



THE COLOMBO MUSEUM. 

(From the ** Ceylon Directory and Hand-Book " for 1876-78.) 

This institution was founded by the late Governor, the Bight Hon'ble 
Sir William H. Gregory, k.c.m.g., and the building has been erected 
at a cost of B120,500, from the designs of the Government Architect, 
Mr. James G. Smither, p.r.i.b.a. 

The Museum grounds, which are about seven acres in extent, are 
bounded on the south and east by the public road, and on the 
remaining sides by cinnamon plantations. An ornamental balustrade 
runs along the roadside, and two pairs of iron gates, with massive 
]}iers surmounted by handsome gas lamps, give access to the carria.ge 
drives by which the building is approached. 

The Museum occupies a central position on the ground at a distance 
of 70 yards from the high road, the principal front facing the south. 
The building is designed in the Italian style of architecture, and is 



Reference to Frontispiece, 411 

two storeys in height, with a frontage of 171^ feet, and a total depth, 
including the offices and oathoildings in the rear, of 232} feet. The 
principal facade consists of a wide central projection and side wings 
connected hy arcades, behind which broad verandas form external 
means of commonioation between the several galleries, at the same 
time affording shade from the sun and shelter from the rain, as well 
as additional floor space for ezhibitive purposes. The arches of these 
arcades (which are continued along the sides of the wings), are 
supported on square piers on the ground floor, and spring from 
light coupled columns with foliated capitals on the upper storey, the 
intervals between the piers and columns being filled in with open 
balustrades. 

In the middle of the principal front is a commodious Carriage 
Portico, from which seven stone steps ascend to the ground floor 
level. At the head of the steps is a Loggia which is separated from 
the portico by three semicircular arches springing from coupled 
columns with polished shafts and enriched capitals, thus dividing the 
steps into three distinct flights. At either end of the Loggia is aii 
open archway communicating with the arcades, and facing the steps 
are three large entrance doorways which give access to the interior of 
the building. 

The Central Hall, which is first entered, is 29 J feet by24| feet, and 
19 feet high, the latter being the height of the lower storey throughout. 
Beyond the hall, and opposite the principal entrance, is the Grand 
Staircase, which is separated from the hall by a transverse open 
corridor communicating with the arcades on either side. The corridor 
is formed by a set of three semicircular arches, upon panelled square 
piers, next the hall, and a parallel set of arches towards the staircase 
springing from round columns, the piers and columns being highly 
polished and embellished with ornamental capitals. The enclosure 
containing the staircase is carried up to the full height of both storeys, 
and is lighted by three large windows in the north wall. The Staircase 
is constructed of polished teak, with ornamental balustrades of metal, 
and rises, first in a single flight 9 feet broad up to a wide intermediate 
landing, and continues in two return flights, each 8 feet broad, to the 
level of the upper floor. At the head of the staircase is a wide open 
corridor similar to that below, communicating with the upper arcades 
right and left, and composed of semicircular arches in two rows 
springing from polished columns enriched with ornamental capitals. 

Returning to the ground floor : to the right of the Central Hall is 
the Library (29 J feet by 24f feet), which is lighted by six wide and 
lofty doorways opening into the arcades in front and rear. This 
room is fitted up with handsome bookcases of polished teak placed 
against the end walls, and projecting from the spaces between the 
doorways on the buttress plan ; and in the middle of the room is a 
large table press, including a desk for the Librarian. Beyond the 
Library is the Beading and Lecture Boom (49 feet by 24f feet), to 
which light is admitted by a recessed window at either end, and five 
doorways opening into the east veranda. Against the west side are 
placed two ornamental cases for ancient MSS., and the remaining wall 
spaces are hung with framed portraits of literary and scientific 
celebrities. The room is comfortably furnished and fitted u^ with 
seven starlight gas chandeliers. The front verandas, portico and 
hall are also lighted with gas. 



412 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

To the left of the Central Hall is a gallery, the same size as the 
Library, and lighted in a similar manner by large doorways opening- 
into the arcades. This room is intended for the exhibition of Ceylon 
product:!, and is fitted up with polished teak wall and buttress cases 
glazed with plate glass. Beyond the ** Ceylon products *' room is a 
large gallery for Antiquities, which corresponds in size with the 
reading room, and is lighted in the same manner with a window at 
either end, and large doorways opening into the west veranda. Ad- 
joining the *• Antiquities Gallery " is the Director's office, with private 
entrance, strong-room, and other accommodation, including the 
Director's private staircase of communication with the upper galleries. 
The whole of the rooms on the ground floor communicate with one 
another by means of large and lofty central doorways. The floors 
throughout are laid with Portland cement, and the ceilings are of 
teak. 

In the rear of the Grand Staircase the necessary accommodation ia 
provided for the public, and an open arched corridor leads to the 
Taxidermist's and " setting up " rooms, an extensive unpacking and 
store room, stabling, &c. 

The upper storey of the building is occupied entirely by the 
*' Natural History " Galleries, which consist of three large rooms 20 
feet high, lighted as below with wide and lofty doorways in the side 
walls, opening into broad open verandas, and with recessed windows^ 
in addition, in the end galleries. The Central Gallery runs east and 
west, and is 93 feet in length by 25} feet in breadth, with an extra 
space or alcove on the south side opposite the Grand Staircase, 30 feet 
by 10} feet. The end galleries, which are placed north and south, are 
each 49 feet long by 25} feet wide, and are connected at either end 
with the Central Gallery by an open screen extending completely 
across the room, and consisting of three semicircular arches springing 
from single columns, with highly polished shafts and ornamental 
capitals. A similar triple arrangement of polished columns and archea 
connects the side walls of the Central Gallery across the opening 
leading to the Grand Staircase, and this is again repeated across the 
opposite alcove, the arrangement producing altogether an exceedingly 
light and elegant effect. The alcove is lighted by three large door- 
ways, which also give access to the flat over the carnage portico. The 
internal walls on this, as well as the ground floor, are architecturally 
plastered, and embellished with ornamental strings, cornices, &g. The 
plain surfaces of the walls are painted the very palest green, all 
mouldings and ornaments being finished dead white or polished. The 
doors and windows throughout the building are of polished teak, with 
semicircular arched heads filled in with scrolls, of wrought iron on 
the lower floor, and of wood above. The floors of the upper galleriea 
are laid with polished teak, and the ceilings are of the same material. 
The latter are flat, and are divided into panels which are diagonally 
boarded and ornamentally moulded. 

The Central Gallery is entirely fitted up with handsome Spanish 
mahogany wall and table specimen cases glazed with plate glass and 
French polished. These cases are all dust-proof, and were manu- 
factured in England especially for the Museum. The wall cases 
occupy the spaces between the doorways, and project into the room on 
the buttress system, which has been found to answer perfectly, all the 
specimens being lighted in the most satisfactory manner. The table 



Reference to Frontispiece. 413 

cases are placed opposite the intervals between the above, and in a 
line down the middle of the gallery. All have plate glass sloping 
tops, and are successfully lighted from the doorways on either side, 
ample space being left between the cases for an inspection of their 
contents. Two of them have super-cases (in addition to the slopes) 
entirely of plate glass, and are fitted up below with drawers enclosed 
within plate glass doors. The other cases are open beneath, and are 
each furnished withr a shelf at top on brass supports for specimens in 
bottles. In the alcove are two wall cases with plate glass fronts. 

The East and West Galleries are fitted up with wall cases at either 
end, and in the East Gallery is a middle row of table cases in addition. 
The latter are open below and fitted with top shelves corresponding 
with those in the Central Gallery. The fittings in the two end 
galleries are all of polished teak glazed with plate glass. 

Descending the Grand Staircase, a slab of white polished marble 
will be observed, inserted in the wall facing the principal entrance, 
bearing the following inscription in gold letters : — 

" This Museum, completed a.d. 1876, was opened to the public, 
January 1, 1877. H.E. the Right Hon'ble Sir WilUam H. Gregory, 
K.C.M.G., Governor; A. Haly, Esq., Director; J. G. Smither, Esq. 
F.B.I.B.A., Architect ; F. Vine, Esq., m.s.e.. Superintendent of Works; 
A. M. W. Marikar and S. Perera, Contractors.'' 

A fine life-size portrait bust of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales adorns 
the Grand Staircase. This is the work of the eminent sculptor, Mr. 
Marshall Wood, who has presented the bust to the Museum. 

Considering that the Museum has been open but a short time, a very 
satisfactory collection of objects has been brought together. The 
book shelves in the Library are filling rapidly ; and the two cases in 
the Beading Boom contain a most valuable collection of Buddhist 
manuscripts, many of them presented to the Ceylon Government by 
the King of Burma. A descriptive catalogue of these, prepared by 
Mr. L. de Zoyza, the learned Sinhalese Translator to Government, 
shows that the collection of MSS. consists of 188 volumes, in 209 
distinct works, and are classified as follows : A. — Consists of texts of the 
Canonical Scriptures of Buddhism. Of these there are twenty-seven 
volumes in Burmese characters, presented by the King of Burma ; 
and fourteen in Sinhalese characters, copied at the expense of Govern- 
ment, or presented by private individuals. B. — Consists of miscel- 
laneous religious works. Of these there are seventy-one volumes. C. — 
Consists of historical works, legendary tales, <&c., and contains twenty- 
five volumes. D. — Philological works. Under this head there are 
twenty-nine volumes. E. — Poetry, Ac, sixteen volumes. F. — Miscel- 
laneous works, scientific, medical, &c. Of these there are six volumes. 
The Library proper contains about 450 volumes, comprising : Works 
relating to Ceylon, publication of learned societies, natural history, 
languages. Oriental literature, periodical publications, archaeology, 
history, chronology and ethnology, astronomy, geography and mis- 
cellaneous. In the " Ceylon products '* room there is a fine collection 
of modem pottery, also a selection of the curious masks used in plays 
and devil dances. The collection of raw materials is as yet far from 
complete, and at present some of the cases contain fragments of 
statuary from Polonnaruwa, portions of bronze lamps from Kurune- 
gala, and a few other antiquities ; but this is a temporary arrange- 
ment. In the North Veranda are some fine specimens of bamboo. 



414 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year, 

rattaD, and Ehetn creeper. In the " Antiquities *' room the most 
strijdng object is the great stone lion from Polonnamwa, and facing 
it is the perforated stone window from the Palace at Tapahn. Bound 
the room are sculptures from Anuradhapura, Tissamaharama and 
elsewhere, and in the west veranda are seyeral inscribed monoliths 
from various parts of the Island : the oldest of these records the 
construction of Wiharas by King Gajabahu, a.p. 125-131, and is in 
a remarkably perfect state of preservation. . 



APPENDIX XXII. 

EEFERENCE TO MAP OF CEYLON. 
(In pocket of Cover,) 

While this Map affords a fairly approximate idea of the 
location of the chief agrioulfcural industries of the island, 
and of the land suitable for extension, it must not be sup- 
posed that the areas are accurately laid down. Cacao, for 
instance, although confined to a few limited localities at 
present, will very likely be found to succeed in several 
additional districts. It is hard to say again where tea 
will not grow in Ceylon, at any rate in the moist zone — ^so 
that 250,000 acres may be a moderate estimate of the area 
when cultivation is fully extended. Where coffee is super- 
seded in the central province, tea may be counted to take 
its place along with cinchona in nearly every district. So 
with palms ; it is well-nigh impossible to show the precise 
areas covered with palm cultivation — especially with the 
areca and kitul, which extend far into the interior — while 
even coco-nut palms, mainly confined though they are to 
the sea-coast, form flourishing plantations up the banks of 
the Mahaoya, some forty miles inland, while at Matale 
1,400 feet above the sea level, there are two or three 
considerable areas of very fine coco-palms. But the chief 
purpose of the map is to give a popular idea of the 
different planting industries of the island, and we feel sure 
it will be found to answer this end. 

Corrections of the Map to September, 1887. 

Total population of the island . . 2,900,000 inhabitants. 

Length of railways . . . . . • 181 miles. 

Length of roads 2,500 „ 

Total area caltivated 3,130,000 acres. 

Land of all kinds in private hands, about 4,000,000 „ 



416 Ceylon in the Jubilee Year. 

The present cultivated area comprises : 

Cardamoms, abont 15,000, with a probable extension to 30,000, acres. 
Jak and other fruits, about 150,000 acres. 
Coffee, from 130,000 to 150,000 acres. 

Tea, from 160,000, with a possible extension to 250,000, acres. 
Cacao, 15,000 acres. 
Cinchona, from 40,000 to 60,000 acres. 
Bhea, &C., 5,000 acres. 

Babber trees, aloes, gums, (&c., from 5,000, with a possible extension 
to 50,000, acres. 

In the Map the figures for population should be altered 
as follows : — 

Northern province to 302,500 inhabitants. 

North-Central province to 66,146 

Eastern „ „ 127,555 

North-Western „ „ 293,327 

Central „ „ 310,000 

Uva „ „ 165,672 

Western „ „ 897,329 

Southern „ „ 433,520 



GENERAL INDEX. 



>« 


It 


»» 


♦> 


»» 


ft 



Abbotsfobd, Tea and Cinchona 

Plantation, 60 
Abh&yagiri d&goba, 216, 225 
Acreage under coffee, 60^7 

cinchona, 71, 72 
tea, 72-6, 88 
new products, 69-74 
Adam's Bridge, 8 

„ Peak, 9, 119, 126 
„ „ shadow of, 337-43 

Administration of Ceylon, 137-51, 

301 
Administration of Justice, cost of, 

32,304 
Adoption among Kandians, 218 
Adulteration of Tea, 346 
African palm-oil nuts, 82 
Agricultural and manufacturing 

interests. Native, 42-58,84-9,150 
Agricultural College, 144 

„ Education, 80, 144 

Agriculture under the Dutch, 6, 

44, 147 
Agriculture, manuals on tropical, 

110 
Agriculturist, Tropical, 71 
Altitudes of mountains, 9, 273, 338 
,, suited to coffee and tea, 

65, 74-6, 826, 344 
American Mission in Ceylon, 238 
Ancient capitals described, 203-25, 

389-406 
Ancient Sinhalese family, 217 
Animals, wild, 129, 179, 211, 219, 

224, 247, 279^ 



28 



Annotto dye plant, 82 
Anur&dhapura, 36, 128, 203-25, 

389-406 
Antiquities, 203-25, 284, 889-406 
Apprentices to tea-planters, 109 
Arabi and the Egyptian exiles, 2, 

173 
Arabs, coffee introduced by, 59, 

corrigenda. 
Arabs, cinnamon known to, 48 
Architecture, Buddhist, 203-25, 

389-406 
Area of Ceylon, 8, 262, 273 
Areas of irrigation tanks, 391 
Areca palm, 53, 211 
Army. See Militabt. 
Arrack, 50 

Assam tea-tree {Illustration) ^ 75 
Astrology, native, 231, 364 
Asylums in Ceylon, 29, 38, 170 
Atmospheric disturbances, 106 
Australia to Ceylon, 145, 357 

Backwaters, 9, 21 
Baker, Sir Samuel, 115 
Bank notes, 11, 27, 39 

„ Oriental Corporation, 26 
Banks in Ceylon, 11, 27, 306 

„ Savings, 10, 26, 84 
Banyan tree (Illustration) ^ 89 
Baptist Mission in Ceylon, 239 
Bark, cinnamon, 48 

,, cinchona. See Cinchona. 
Barnes, Governor Sir Edward, 

13-15, 23, 61 



418 



General Index. 



B«thf, andeni, in Ceylon, 393 
BiUticaloft, U, 45, 55, 315 
Beef, Hxppl J of, in Cejkm, 5^ 12B 
BeaeUcUm of C^lon (non-offidal) 

257 
Beoefaeiions bj S. D. A. Baje- 

pakse, Esq., 352 
Benefactions bj C. H. de Soysa, 

Esq., 350 
Benefits from roads, 18 

„ planting enterprise, 96-104 
Betel ebewing, 211 
Birds in Ceylon, 281 
BoaU, Bridge of, 13, 14 
Bo-tree, samd, 209, 284, 360 
Books on G^lon, 165, 242, 315 
Botanical Gardens, Peradeniya, 

121, 314 
Botanical Gardens, experimental, 

144 
Botanical Gardens, Hakgalla, 55, 

126, 315 
Botanical Gardens, Eew, 336 
Botony of Ceylon, 121, 278, 360 
Brazen Palace, 210, 401 
Brazil, Coffee prodoction in, 320 
Breakwater, Colombo, 16, 36, 107, 

307 
Breakwater railway, 19 
Bread-frait tree, 54, 361 
Brides, native, 159 
Bridges and Bridge of Boats, 13, 14, 

15,362 
British Governors of Ceylon 252 

„ „ (IUU8- 

tration)^ xvi 
British rule in Ceylon, 8-20 

„ benefits to natives, 10-22, 
36, 94-104 
Buddha, moral laws of Gautama, 

226-30 
Buddhism, 146, 169, 167, 247, 286 
in Cambodia and China, 
3,167 

Buddhism in Burmah and Slam, 167 
Buddhism and caste, 159, 251, 

867-80 
Buddhism and its tenets, 160, 211 
Buddhist festivals and worship, 

225-35, 364 
Buddhist temporalities, 31, 38, 

146, 401 
Buddhist motto, 156 

ru'.ns, 21, 203-25, 389-406 



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t* 



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Buddhist sffhools, 31, 116 
Bollocks imported, 57 
Bollock carts, 22 
. Barial-grooDds, 229 
Borgfaers, Btatos of, 39, 40, 263 
Bomaide, Sir Broee, Chief Justice, 
32 

Cacao coltiTation, 78-81, 321 
e^rts, 80, 86, 323, 325 
prices, 109 

tree aiid pods (Jl/iicfra^tbii), 
79,81 
Cambodia, presents from king of, 3 
Canals nuude by Botch, 5, 9, 21 

„ mileage o^ 10 
Caootehooc. See Imbll-bubbsb. 
Capital and reioms, 91-4, 292 

„ ancient, 203-25 
Capitalists, prospects for, 105-ii2y 

32&-36 
Cardamoms, 81-2, 212, 389 

„ exports, 86, 325 

Carriage of produce. 111 
Carrier-pigeons, 34 
Carte and carriages, 11, 22, 332, 363 
Cart-roads, 10 
Carpenters, Sinhalese, 57 
Caste, 19, 33, 40,155-9, 251, 367-80 
Cattle, number of in Ceylon, 11, 

269, 297 
Cattle, rearing and marking, 56, 

87, 128 
Ceara rubber-tree (Illustration), 83 
Census of Ceylon, 23, 35, 262 
Central Province, 314 
Ceylon and its planting industries, 
318-27 
antiquities, 114, 203-25, 389 
ancient history and names, 

2, 114, 272 
attractions for the traveller, 

113-32, 312 
books on, 315 
Chinese invasion of, 3 
letter to London Times on, 

318-27 
Medical College, 29 
natund features of, 8, 106, 

114-32, 272-9 
Observer, 70, 110, 287 
Pall Mall Gazette's inter- 
viewer,. 328 
progress in, 10, 96-104, 242 



If 
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If 

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>> 



General Index. 



419 



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it 



a 



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If 



»» 



Ceylon revenue and expenditure, 
133-6 
Bifles, 28 
summary of information, 

272-317 
yalue of trade, 96, 297 
Charitable allowanoes, 11 
Changes in European element, 91 
Chief Justices of Ceylon, 253 

„ towns, 286 
China, Buddhism in, 3, 286 

„ tea, 69, 74, 77 
Chinese in Ceylon, 3, 4, 334 
Christianity and Education, 288 

„ in Ceylon, 236-50 

Church Mission in Ceylon, 238 
Cinchona, area planted, 69-72 

branch (Illustration), 71 
export, 86, 88, 320-4 
Cinnamon export, 5, 48, 86 
monopoly, 5, 34 
production of, 44, 48, 
69 

Citronella oil, 55, 86 
Civil Service, Ceylon and India, 

149-50, 302 
Civilization in Ceylon, 3 

„ and roads, 18 
Clubs, 40 
Climate of Ceylon, 104, 106, 107, 

115-20, 127, 205, 276, 331 
Clothmg of natives, 101, 117, 363 
Coaches and Ceylon, 299 
Coal, imports into Ceylon, 87 
Coast, belt of palms, 49 
Cocoa. See Cacao. 
Coconut cultivation, 6, 44, 48-55, 

293 
Coconut climber, 52 

exports, 86, 272, 327 

fibre. See Cont. 

oil, 327 

products of the, 49-51 

plantation (Illustration), 

43, 122 
plantation, tax on, 147 
Code, Penal and Civil, 32, 112, 

143, 304 
Coffee, altitude suitable, 65, 74 
„ bush (Illustration), 62, 73 
„ capital and profits, 92-4 
„ crops, total, 92 
„ cultivation, 6, 60-8, 318-27 
„ disease, 64-8, 294, 319, 329 



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11 
11 
11 
11 

11 

11 

11 



Coffee exports, 60-7, 86, 88, 322,326 
future of, 88 
Gardens, Sinhalese, 62 
introduced, 59, corrigenda, 
Liberian (Illustration), 104 
„ native, 94 

plantation (Illustration), 60 
„ profits from, 63, 
91-3, 97-101 
prices, 90 
Coir export, 86 

„ fibre, 50 
College, Ceylon Medical, 29, 35 

„ A^cultural, 144 
Colleges, 175, 237 
Colombo Breakwater, 16, 36, 107, 

301 
Colombo described, 116, 312 

„ „ by "Vagabond," 

357-65 
Colombo Graving-dock,36,141,14& 
Harbour, 307 
Museum, 361, 407-14 
population, 10, 116 
railway route described, 

313 
shipping advantages, 107, 

111, 145 
waterworks, 35, 118, 140, 

308 
versus Trinoomalee, 36, 
145 

Colonial Office, 137, 140 
Commerce of Ceylon, 5, 297 
Communication, means of, 5, 13-22, 

36, 107, 299 
Commutation, rice, 134, 148, 176 
Compulsory labour, 33 
Company, Ceylon, Limited, 27 
Companies, Steamer, 107 
Conditions of Ceylon under British 

rule, 9-13 
Configuration of Ceylon, 8 
Conservation of forests, 35 
Contribution, Militazy, 28 
Coode, Sir John, and Colombo 

Harbour Works, 16 
Coolies, Tamil, 265 

„ (Illustrations), 345, 347 
„ their language, 155 
Copra, 86 
Coral reefs, 115 
Cordiner, Eev. James, 17 
Cost of Administration of Justice, 32 



420 



General Index. 



CoBt of liyisg in Ce}lon, 180 
Ck)tton cultiyation, 5, 55 

„ spinnerB, 5iB 

„ imports, tax on, 149 
<k>\incil reform, 33, 168 
Courts of Law, 304 
<:hrime in Ceylon, 32, 304 
Crises, Financial, 61, 90-4 
Crocodiles, 132 
Croton-oil seeds, 82 
Crown Colonies, 1, 137 

„ land sold, 65, 135, 296 
Crucibles, plumbago for, 86 
Cruelty to animals, 160 
Cultivated areas, 11, 42-58, 290 
Cultivation of new products, 36, 

69-84 
Currency, Decimal, 27, 306 
„ notes, 11, 27, 39 
Customs, 135, 307 
Cycles of depression, 90 

P&gobas in Ceylon, 129, 212-25, 

390-406 
Dalada Festival, 225-30 
Dambulla, 404 
Debt of Ceylon, 142, 301 
Decimal currency, 27, 167 
Deer-horns exported, 86, 87 
Defences. See Militaby. 
Deities honoured, 233 
Demon- or devil-worship, 234, 248, 

406 
Demon-priest of Morotto, 248. 
Depression, Financial, 61, 90, 110, 

319, 329 
Descent of Eandyan Chiefs, 218 
Pe Soyza, Mr. C. H., 29, 162, 257, 

350 
Devil-dancer {Illiutration), 160 
De Zylwa, Bev. Peter, of Moratuwa, 

235, 249 
Dhoby washerman {Illustration) ^ 

157 
Dikoya, climate, etc., 65, 116 
Dimbula plantation (Illustration), 

60 
Dimbula, climate, etc., 65, 116 
Diseases in Ceylon, 311 
Disease, coffee, 47, 64-8, 294, 319, 

329 
Disestablishment in Ceylon, 36, 

167 
Dl^»i» fiofB pearl ogwtaR, 388 



Dock, Graving, 36, 141, 146 

Dolosbage, Tea in, 69 

Domestic servants in Ceylon, 154-5, 

266 
Dress of natives, 101, 117, 363 
Dumbara valley, cacao plantations, 

123 
Dutch rule in Ceylon, 5 
Duties and taxes, 146-50, 307 
Dyeing substances, 82, 87 

Earthquakes, 106 

Ebony, 86, 87 

Edinburgh, The Duke of, 35, 170 

Education, 11, 18, 30, 143, 146, 

153, 162, 167, 288, 351-2 
Education and missions, 236-50 
Egyptian exiles, 173 
Ekneligoda, Eandian chief, 184 
Electricity, 57, 215 
Elephant kraal or hunting, 130, 

180-202 
Elephants, wild (Illustration) , 178, 

186 
Elephants, preservation of, 87, 280, 

404 
Elevation suited for planting, 65, 74 
"Eleven Tears in Ceylon," by 

Forbes, 203-25 
Elk hunting, 129 
Ella Pass, 127 

Elliott, Mr. E., on rice culture, 44 
Endowments, Buddhist, 31, 38, 

146 
English language spoken, 31, 154 
Essential oils, 55 
Estate population, 265 

„ property, value of, 63-7, 

292 
Executive Councillors, list of, 255 
Europeans shifting, and number 

in Ceylon, 91, 263-4 
Executive Council, 169, 301 
Expenditure of Ceylon, 10, 133-6, 

298 
Export of coffee, 60-7, 88, 326 
„ cinnamon, 48 
„ coconut, 50 
duties, 35 

table (1873-86), 86, 327 
of tea, 324 
Exports under the Dutch, 6, 60 
Extension of Bailway, 16, 20, 38, 



i» 



>i 



t» 



»» 



»i 



General Index. 



421 



Facilities for travel, 111 
Factory, Government, 57 
Fa-hien, Chinese traveller, in Cey- 
lon, 4 
Famine and roads, 18 
Farm, Stock, 151 
Faviell, Mr. W. F., first railway 

contractor in Ceylon, 18 
Female education, 30, 63 
Festivals, Eandian, 225-35 
Fibre, Coir, etc., 50, 52, 86, 321 

„ Kitul, 86 
Financial depression, 61, 00, 319, 

329 
Fishery, Pearl-oyster, 130, 136, 381 
Fish tax, 34, 103, 148 

„ imports, 269 
Flying-foxes, 247 
Fodder-grass, 57 
Food consumption, 47, 99 

„ supplies, 42, 47, 49, 56 

„ taxes, 147, 296 
Forbes, Major, extracts from his 

book, 203-36 
Forced labour in Ceylon, 6, 33, 48 
Foreign invasions of Ceylon, 3 
Forest conservation, 36, 136 
„ land, price of, 65, 291 
Freights in Ceylon, 107, 111 
Friend-in-Need Societies in Ceylon, 

11 
Fruit-trees, etc., 56, 278, 291, 361 
Fungus, Coffee-leaf. See Disease. 

GaUe, 141, 142, 313 

Game in Ceylon, 35, 179, 211, 224 

Gampola, 4, 123 

Gangaruwa, view of, 12 

Gansabawa (Village Council) 35-6 

Gaols in Ceylon, 32, 36 

Garden cultivation, 44, 47, 62 

Gas in Colombo, 36 

Gems, 87, 117, 276 

Genealogies, 218, 364 

Geography of Ceylon, 9, 272-86 

Geology of Ceylon, 275, 405, 409 

Gneiss rocks, 405 

Gods honoured by Sinhalese, 233 

Gold, 87 

Government can do for Ceylon, 

what its, 137-51 
Government note issue, 11, 27, 306 

„ reforms in the, 168 

Governor, an ideal, 39, 139 



Governor's salary, 38 

Governors, British, in Ceylon, 

Frontispiece* 
Governors, a list of, 252 
Grain. See Bice. 
Grant-in-aid System of Education, 

30,35 
Grass, 57 

Gravelled roads, 17 
Graving-dock, 36, 141, 146 
Gregory, Sir WUliam, 16, 36, 40, 

70, 98, 126, 139 
Green, Dr., American Missionar}', 

29 
Green bug, 47 
Gunmakers, Sinhalese, 67 
Guests at the Governor's, 40 

Hakgalla Botanic Gardens, 66, 126, 

316 
Hambantota, 180 
Haputal6 extension, 20, 128, 140-3 

„ waterfalls, 127, 131 
Harbour, Colombo, 16, 107, 141, 

145, 301 
„ ,, (Illustration) t 8 

Hardy on Ceylon, Spenoe, 101, 242 
Harvesting tea and coffee, 74, 346 
Headmen in Ceylon, 144-8 
Health in Ceylon, 98, 311, 331 
Healthiness of Colombo, 118 

of Uva, 127 
Heber*s hymn, 48 
Heights of mountains, 9, 273, 338 
Hemileia Vastatrix, 64-8, 294, 319, 

329 
Hides and skins, export of, 87 
Hill Station. See Nuwaba Elita. 
Historical monuments in Ceylon, 

See Monuments. 
Historical notes, 283 
Holidays and natives, 156 
Horses, number of, in Ceylon, 11, 

22 
Horton Plains, 126, 127, 179 
Hospitals m Ceylon, 11, 29, 311, 

360 
Hotels in Colombo, 116, 117, 130 
„ „ Nuwara EUya, 126, 130 
Houses, inhabited, in Ceylon, 10, 

26, 222 
Hurricanes in Ceylon, 106 

Iddamalgoda, Eandian Chief, 185 



422 



General Index. 



Images and image-worship in Cey- 
lon, 235 

Immigration ronte, 17 

Import duties, 134, 147-9 

Imports of Ceylon, staple, for 45 
years, 269, 297 

Imports, valae of, 10 

,, of grain. See Bice. 

ImproTements, legislative and 
. social, 33-41 

Improvements in Ceylon, 98-103 

Income from railwa3rs, 20, 135, 366 

India and Ceylon tea compared, 77, 
107 

India-rubber, 82, 321 

„ (Illustration), 83 

Indirect taxes, 147, 149 

Industries. See Nativss. 

Insects, 132, 282 

Inspection of investments. 111 

Interview with Ceylon journalist, 
328-36 

Intoxicants, 50 

Invalids visiting Ceylon, 116 

Invasions of Ceylon, 3, 283 

Investment, good field for, 105-8 

Irrigation Board, 46, 148 
,, works. See Tanks. 

Ironworks, Colombo, 57 

Jaffna, 44, 49, 315 
Jaggery pahn, 52 
Jails in Ceylon, 32, 36 
Jak-tree, 54, 361 
Java and liquor, 50 

„ and Ceylon compared, 106 
Jinirickshas in Ceylon, 118 
Jubilee Celebration, 170-7 
Juries and caste in Ceylon, 83 
Justice, administration of, 32, 304 
„ charter of, 33 

Ealawewa tank, 140, 390 
Ealutara, the ** Bichmond of C^- 

lon,*» 119 
Ealutara, railway to, 19-20 
Kandy, 21, 25, 121, 225-35, 314 
Lake (Illtistration), 120 
railway line, 19-21 
temple {Illtutration)^ 167 
Eandyan chiefs, descent of, 218 

chieftain (Illustration), 

134 
festivals, 231-5 



It 
11 



1) 



11 



Eandyan law, 218, 303-6 
„ mythology, 233 

Eanthalai tank, 179 

Eaolin for pottenr, 4 

Eelani Biver bridged, 13 

„ Temple, etc., described, 357- 
65 

Eew Gardens, 336 

Eings of Ceylon, ancient, 3, 146, 
206, 229, 283 

Eitul or Jaggery palm, 52 
„ fibre, 86 

Enox, Bobert, in Ceylon, 165, 206 

Eraal, Elephant, 130, 180-202 

Eurunegala, Cacao in, 80 

Eyle, ^. John, and Colombo Har- 
bour Works, 16 

Labour, compulsory, abolished, 6, 

33, 48 
Labour on roads, 34 

„ supply (Tamil Coolies), 63, 
331 
Labour, Chinese, 334 
Labugama Eraal, 180-202 
,, Beservoir, 392 
Lakes and lagoons in Ceylon, 9, 21, 

246, 274 
Lamps, festival of the, 233 
Land sales and price of, 65, 110, 

135, 296, 321, 331 
Land Laws, 112 

„ Tax, 134, 147, 296 
Langdon, Bev. S., and Mission 

work, 62 
Languages spoken in Ceylon, 31, 

154, 287 
Law, Eandyan and Boman-Dutch, 

218, 303-6 
Law Beform, 112, 143, 146-50 
Layard, Sir Charles P., on rice 

cultivation, 44 
Leaf Disease, Coffee, 64-8, 294- 

319, 329 
Leeches in Ceylon, 132 
Legislation, Ceylon and India, 166 
Legislative Council, 33, 168 ' 

„ improvements, 33-41, 

112, 143, 146-50, 168 
Lemon-grass oil, 55 
Liberian coffee. See Coffee. 

„ „ (Illustration), 62 
Licenses, Liquor, 36, 50 
Lightning-conductors, 57, 278 



General Index, 



423 



Liquor traffic, 36, 60 
Literature, Ceylon, 242, 287-315 
Litigation, fondness for, 31 
Local Boards, 35 
Longden, Governor Sir James, 38, 

39 
Lunatic Asylum in Ceylon, 38 

MacYioar*s Mission work Dr., 

sketch of, 245 
MacCarthy, Governor Sir Chas., 16 
Mahawanso Ancient History of 

Ceylon, 215 
Mabaveliganga river, 9, 12, 13, 

274 
Major-Generals in Ceylon, 254 
Malays, 28, 156, 175, 219, 263, 264 
Maldive Islands, 49 
Manchester goods, 56 
Manuals on planting, etc., 110 
Manufacture of tea, 347 
Manufactures, native, 57 
Map showing products of Ceylon, 

415, and in pocket. 
Map of Ceylon, Railway, etc., 142, 

313, 366, 415 
Marble, imitation of, 214 
Markham, Mr. Clements, 70 
Marriage and Caste, 156-9 
Marriage Laws, 35, 304 
Masons in Ceylon, 58, 267, 290 
Maskeliya planting district, 65, 116 
Matale, 19, 80, 123, 143 
Matara, 44, 161 
Mauritius and Ceylon, 8, 106 
Measures, Weights and, 307 
Medical College and Schools, 29, 35 
Medical expenditure and hospitals, 

11,29 
Meteorology, 277 
Military roads, 15 

„ contribution, 11, 28, 39 
,, Ceylon a central station, 

145 
„ force, 10, 28, 96, 336 
Mineralogy of Ceylon, 275 
Mines, Plumbago, 85 
Missions in Ceylon, 62, 97t 153, 

168, 236-50 
Molesworth, Mr. G. L., and the 

Ceylon railway, 19 
Monoliths, 397 
Monopoly, cinnamon, and others, 

5, 34, 48, 146 



I 



Monsoons, 106, 115, 118 
Monuments, Historical, 36, 128, 

203 
Moorman *• Tamby " (Illu8tration)f 

154 
Monuments, Number of, 263, 

264 
Moonstones in Ceylon, 400 
Moratuwa and Mission work, 246 
Morgan, Sir Biohard, 31 
Mountains reached by train, 120 

,, of Ceylon, 8, 273 
Municipalities in Ceylon, 35, 168- 

302 
Museum, Colombo, 36, 407-14 
Mythology, Kandyan, 233 

Nanu-oya, 19, 123-6, 143 
Nationalities in Ceylon, 263, 284 
Native agricultural interest, 42-58 
character and dress, 117, 
144, 156, 162-4, 243, 363 
food, 42-§6, 99 
industries, 42-58 
judges, 166 
manufactures, 57 
occupations, 57, 78, 84, 88, 
99,144,150,162,223-232, 
264 
owners of plumbago mines, 

85 
trade and profits, 88, 94 
,, weddings, 159 
Natives benefited by our rule, 10- 
22, 36, 96-104, 292, 293 
benefited by new province, 

45,99 
employment for, 36, 99, 

162, 289 
and Government employ, 

150, 242 
and caste, 19, 33, 40, 155- 

9, 251, 367-80 
as lawyers, 31 
and taxation, 147 
and tea, 78,84, 150 
treatment of, 39-40 
and wages, 96, 331 
social life and customs, 
152-65, 363 
Naula Falls (Illuttration), 131 
Naval station at Trincomalee, 145 
Nawalapitya railway to Uva, 19, 
123 



»> 



»» 

»» 
»> 
»» 



If 



11 



ft 

»i 

}) 

>> 

»» 
»» 

»» 
)) 
11 



424 



General Index. 



New products cultivated, 36, 69-84, 

99,320 
New yegetables introduced, 55 

„ Tear festival, 231, 364 
Newspapers, Native, 35, 288 
North Central Province, 16, 45, 99, 

140 
North, Hon. F., 33, 103 
Northern Arm to Breakwater, 36 
Note issue, (Government, 11, 27, 

306 
Notes, Oriental Bank, 27 
Nutmegs, 82 
Nuwara Eliya, 19, 20, 24, 76, 111, 

115, 123, 311, 314 
Nuwara Eliya (illustration), 124 

Observer^ Ceylon. See Ceylon Ob- 

SEBVEB. 

Occupation of natives, 264-8, 289, 

See Natives. 
Oils, essential, 55 
Oil-cake or poonac, 51, 86 
Oil, coconut, 50, 86 
Oil-orushing mills, 51 
Opem'ngs for men with capital, 108, 

321 
Opening for English girls, 335 
Ophir of Solomon, 2, 272 
Orchella weed, 86 
Oriental Bank Corporation, 26, 39, 

322 
Oysters, Pearl, 384-8 

Paddy. See Bice. 

Pall Mall Gazette on Ceylon, 328- 
36 

Pahn oil, 50, 123 

Pahn, palmyra, 49, 51, 88, 123, 
279, 398 

Palms, coconut, etc., 43, 49-55, 323 
„ group of [Illustration) t 122 
„ planted by forced labour, 6 
„ talipot {Illustration) t 54 

Pansalas or Buddhist schools, 31 

Papaws, 55 

Passage, cost of, 130 

Pasturage, 56, 128, 291 

Patana grass land, 56 

Pearls, export of, 5, 87, 130, 133 

Pearl fisheries, 115, 135, 381-8 

Penal Code, 32 

Peradeniya Botanic Gardens, 121 



Peradeniya group of palms {Illus» 

tration), 122 
Perahera Festival, Eandy, 232 
Pidurutalagala, highest mountain, 

9, 126, 273 
Pigeon Service, Carrier-, 34 
Pilgrimages in Ceylon, 36 
Pine-apples in Ceylon, 54 
Plantation, Coconut, 43, 49-55 

,, Companies, 27 
Planters of Ceylon, 93-4, 108, 110, 

330 
Planters' Association report on tea, 

with Illustrations, 344-9 
Planting districts, material progress 

in the, 59-84 
Planting statistics, 322 
Planting industry, 318; origin and 

rise of, 59-84 
Planting industry, Tea-, 76 

,, „ what it has done 

for Ceylon, 96-104 
Planting profits, 90-4, 292 
Plumbago, 85, 86, 290 
Police in Ceylon, 10, 306 
Polonaruwa, 128, 180 

„ ruins (Illustration). 

24, 204 
Polyandry in Ceylon, 35 
Poonac, 86 
Population, 10, 23, 96, 168, 223, 

237, 262, 284 
Population in tank region, 25, 

223, 398 
Portuguese Bule in Ceylon, 4 
Postal Savings Banks, 10 

„ Service, 11, 26, 35, 308 
Pottery, kaolin for, 4 
Poverty in Ceylon, 103 
Precious Stones, 87, 117 
Press, the, in Ceylon, 11, 34, 109 
Price of land, 65, 110, 321, 331 

„ coffee, 64, 67, 70 
Priests and education, 146, 247 
Products of Ceylon, 6, 42-57 

„ map illustrating, 411, and 

in pocket. 
Products, new, 69-84, 99, 320 
Profits of railway, 20, 135, 143 

„ from planting tea, 88, 293 

,, „ ,, coffee, 91-3, 

97-101 
Progress of Ceylon in ninety years, 

8-32 



General Index. 



425 



>» 



»» 



Progress of Ceylon in fifty years, 177 
Property of natives, 22, 94 

n valae of coffee, 63-7, 292 
Prospects for capitalists, 105-12, 

328-^3 
Prosperity of Ceylon, 62, 97-104 
Province, North Central, 16, 45 
Provinces of Ceylon, 262, 285, 302, 

312 
Public Debt of Ceylon, 301 
Pnttalam, 179 

Qaeen*s Advocates, 255 

Queen's Jubilee, celebration of the, 

170-7 
Quinine. See Cinchona. 

Baces in Ceylon, variety of, 117, 152 
Bailway between Ceylon and India, 

149 
Bailway branch lines needed, 142 
Colombo and Sandy, 18, 

20, 141 
extension to Haputale, 19, 
38, 125, 128 
„ extension to Ahuradha- 
pura, 393 
income from the, 20, 135, 

143 
map and description, 142, 

313-66, 416 
seaside, 19, 20, 119, 141-2 
statistics, 143, 332, 366 
Bain in Ceylon, 73, 277 
Bajapakse, Mr. Sampson, 29, 164, 

352, 355 
Bamboda Falls (Illu8trati<m)t 125 
Bamisseram Island, 8 
Beform of laws and taxes, 112, 146 
Beforms, political and social, 33-41, 

168 
Begiments in Ceylon, 28, 145 
B^stration of marriages and titles, 

etc., 35 
Beptiles in Ceylon, 282 
Belies in Ceylon, 205, 213, 225-35, 

401 404 
Beligion and State aid, 34, 36, 167 
„ „ employment, 5 

Beligions and population, 168, 264, 

286 
Bents or land tax, 134, 147-8 
Beservoirs or tanks, 391 



»» 

M 
»» 



f) 



»» 



Besidence in Ceylon of Europeans, 

91-4 
Bestoration of tanks. See Tanks. 
Betums. See Profits. 
Bevenue of Ceylon, 10, 96, 98, 298 
„ and expenditure, 10, 133-6 
Bice cultivation, 36, 42-7, 133, 

290-294 
Bice country, 16, 42, 123 
„ duty on, 133, 148 
„ Festival of the New, 233 
„ imports, 42-7, 133, 269 
Bifles, the Ceylon, 28 
Bise of theplanting industry, 59-84 
Bivers in Ceylon, 9, 274 

scenery, view of (Illustra* 

Hon), 12 
and lagoons, 21 
Boads, 10, 13-19, 98, 101, 111, 300 
„ and famine, 18 
„ tax, 34, 146 
Bobinson, Governor Sir Hercules, 

16, 35, 63, 65 
Boman Catholics, 4, 83, 168 

„ „ and fishermen, 148 

Bomans and cinnamon, 48 
Boyal visits to Ceylon, 170 
Bubber cultivation, 82, 83 

„ variety of, in Ceylon, 117 
Bubies, 87 
Buins, 203-225 
Bnpee currency, 27 
Buwanwela, 142, 211, 214 
Buwanweliseya d&goba, 57 

Sago, 52, 54 

Salmon on Crown Colonies, 187-9 

Salt monopoly and duties, 185,146-7 

Sanatarium. See Nuwaba Eliya. 

Sapan-wood, 86 

Sapphires, 87 

Satmwood, 87 

Savings Banks, 10, 26, 84, 806 

Scenery of Ceylon, 118-82 

Schools in Ceylon. See Education. 

„ mission, 158, 242 
Scotch, the pioneers of planting, 108 
Seaside line. See Bailway. 
Seasons, dry and wet, 65 
Secretary of State, 188, 140 
Self-government, 168 
Serendib, term for Ceylon, 2 
Serpent-worsbip, 400 
Servants, domestic, 154, 266 



426 



Oeneral Index. 



»» 

»» 

»» 

I* 
»» 
»» 



Servioe tenures, and temples, 36 
Shadow of the Peak, 337-43 
Sharks, 132 
Sheep imported, 56 
Shipping conveniences, 107, 111 
„ entered and cleared, 10 
Shooting in Ceylon, 128, 179 
Sindbad's adventures, 2, 118 
Sinhalese and caste, 19, 40, 155-9, 

261, 367 
Sinhalese, number of, 263 

improvements among, 

101-3 
man and woman (Illus- 
tration), 112 
occapations of, 57, 99- 

103, 144, 332 
servants, 155 
plombago miners, 85 
as tea-planters, etc., 78, 
830, 335 
Skinner, Major, 181 
Skins, export of, 87 
Slavery, abolition of, 33 
Snakes, 132, 333, 403 
Snipe, 128 
Social life and custom, 33, 39, 40, 

152-65 
Soils, 72, 106, 128 
Southern India, exports to, 48, 50, 

51, 53, 55 
,, imports from, 42, 

45, 56, 149 
,, labour from, 63,97 
„ railway from Cey- 
lon to, 149 
Soyza, C. H. de, 29, 163, 257, 

350 
Speculation in Coffee, 90 
Spence Hardy on Ceylon, 101, 242 
Sport in Ceylon, 128, 179-202, 211, 

224, 280 
Sports for the people, 144 
Stamp duties, 147 
Statistics of Ceylon, 10, 133-6, 270, 

272, 317, 329 
Statistics of Railways, 366 
Steamers calling at Colombo, 107, 

300 
Steamer rates, 130 
Stock, 151, 269, 296 
Storms. See Monsoon. 
Sugar-cane, 56, 291 
Sugar, jaggery, 52 



»> 



II 



Summary of information on Cej- 

Ion, 272, 317 
Superstition, 208, 231, 248 

Table showing progress in Ceylon, 
10 
„ of exports, 1883-86, 86 
Tabrobane of (Greeks and Bomans, 2 
Talipot-palm (Illustration), 54 
Tamarind-wood, 88 
Tamby, Moorman (Ulustration), 154 
Tamils in Ceylon, 4, 46, 263, 389 
Tamil CooUes, 77, 97, 265, 331, 345 
„ Coolie Mission, 97, 153, 239 
Tank region, populonsness of, 25, 

223, 398 
Tanks in Ceylon, 9, 15, 16, 34, 36, 
42, 45, 141, 179, 221-3, 389, 406 
Tanks in Ceylon (Illustration), 24, 

204 
Taxation in C^lon, food, fish, salt, 

etc., 34, 38, 103, 146-50, 298 
Tea acreage, 72, 76, 88 
„ adulteration, 321, 346 
„ altitudes, suitable, 74, 76, 321, 
326,344 
Assam, 74 

„ (Illustration), 75 
bush (Illustration), 345 
China and Hybrid, 74 
„ cultivation, 36, 69-78, 107, 
293, 320-6 
estimated production, 88, 323 
exports, 76, 86, 88, 323-4, 344 
grown by natives, 84, 150 
harvesting, 74, 150, 345 

(Illus,), 345, 347 
in India and Ceylon compared, 

77, 107 
Ceylon planters' Association 
Report, 344-9 
„ in London market, 77 
„ introduced, 69 
labour for, 77-8, 150 
manufacture, 346 
machinery, 77-8 
Tp]&ni (^Illustration), 70, 75, 345 
planting taught, 109 
„ planter at work, 333 
Technical education, 80 
Telegraphic service, 11, 26, 809 
Temperance in Ceylon, 86, 50 
Temperature (mean) of Colombo, 
etc., 115, 118, 277 



II 



II 



II 



II 



II 



II 



II 



II 



II 



II 



II 



II 
•I 

II 
II 
II 



General Index. 



427 



Temple endowments, 31, 88, 146, 

401 
Temple, Bnddhist, 208-25, 364, 

889-406 
TemporalitieB, Baddhist, 81, 88, 

146, 401 
Theobroma Cacao {Illustration)^ 

71,81 
Thwaites, G. H. K., F.B.S., 64, 70 
Tides in Ceylon, 275 
Timber, 49, 62, 87, 289 
Tobacco in Ceylon, 55 
Tombs and d&gobas, 212-25, 280, 

389-406 
Tom-tom beater {Illtutration)^ 160 
Tonnage of shipping entered, etc. , 

10 
Topari tank (Illustration), 24, 180 
Topographical features, 8, 272-5 
Tortoises in Ceylon, 161 
Torture, abolition of, 88 
Towns in Ceylon, 101, 286 
Trade and Population, statistics, 

264-8 
Trade benefited by planting enter- 
prise, 99 
Trade of Ceylon, value of, 10, 96 

„ with HolUind, 5 
Traffic, wheeled, 21 
Tramways, 808 
Transport facilities, 107, 111 
Travellers, attractions for. 111, 113, 

182, 312 
Travellers, routes for, 179 
Tree, sacred, 209, 284, 860 

„ tomato introduced, 55 
Trees, fruit, etc., 55, 278, 291, 861, 
Tiinoomalee, 36, 179, 815 

„ Harbour (Illustra- 

tton), 87 
Trips m Ceylon, shooting, 179 

„ to Ceylon, 111, 118-32 

„ from Colombo, 119 
Troops, number of, 96 
Tropical Agriculturist^ 71, 110, 

288 
Tunnels, 299 
Tytler, Mr. Bobert Boyd, 61, 80 

Uva, 88, 111, 116, 127-8, 140, 
143, 814 



Uva, cacao in, 80 
„ coffee in, 74 

Value of Coffee Propertv, 62-7, 292 
„ „ „ exported, 88 
„ „ tea and cinchona, 88 
„ „ Ceylon trade, 96 

Vampires, 247 

Van Imhoff, Dutch Governor, 6 

Veddahs, 268, 264 

Vegetables introduced, 55 

Vegetation in Ceylon, 118-16, 121, 
278, 360 

Vernacular schools, 80, 146 

Veyangode, railway from, 141, 142 

Views to be noticed by visitors, 
312 

Village Councils, 35, 86, 802 
„ Tanks, 86, 46 

Vishnu, 288 

Visitors, routes for, 179, 813 

Visitor, attractions for the, 118-32 

Volunteers in Ceylon, 10, 88 

Wages of Natives, 97, 831, 834 
Ward, Governor Sir Henry, 19, 

61, 189 
Washerman or Dhoby (Ulustra^ 

tton), 157 
Waste-land used by Dutch, 6 
Water Supply of Colombo, 85, 118, 

140, 803 
Waterfalls (Illustration), 125, 131, 

274 
Wealth of Ceylon, 5, 7, 28, 98 

„ „ natives, 22, 49, 96-104, 

882 
Weddings, native, 159 
Weights and Measures, 307 
Wesleyan Mission in Ceylon, 241 
Wilderness of the Peak cultivated, 

64, 101 
Works on Ceylon, 165,242,287, 315 
Worms, Messrs., of Bothschild, 69 
Worship, Buddhist, and festivids, 

225-85 
Writers on Ceylon, list of, 815 

Yantiantota, 184 



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